Family Problems
by LiaBelle
Summary: Lindsay and Danny have to go to Montana to take care of family problems.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

A ringing phone woke Danny up at 2 o'clock in the morning. "Hello?" he answered groggily.

"Danny? It's Nancy Monroe, Lindsay's mom."

"Mrs. Monroe? You do realize that it's 2 o'clock in the morning, right?"

"Yes, and I'm very sorry to wake you both up, but I have very urgent business. I need to talk to Lindsay right now."

"Ok, Mrs. M, I'll wake her up." He put her on hold and rolled over, taking a brief moment to admire his wife, who was sleeping peacefully. "Honey," he whispered, shaking her gently. "Your mom's on the phone."

Lindsay opened her eyes. "What time is it?" she asked sleepily.

"Two. She says it's really important though." He handed her the phone. "It's on hold."

"If she's calling to tell me about her latest adventure to Wal-Mart again I swear I'll kill her!" she grumbled. Danny chuckled as she answered the phone. "What is it mom?" She was silent for a few minutes, except for a few "okays" and "yeahs." Danny began to get worried, as her expression got sadder and sadder. "Okay mom, we'll get out there as soon as we can." She paused. "Okay, I love you too. Bye." She hung up.

"What's wrong, baby?" Danny asked genuinely concerned. It pained him to see her hurting like she obviously was.

"My dad had a heart attack." She said, choking up a bit, "the doctors don't think that he's going to make it, so mom wants me to fly out as soon as possible."

"Oh, Linds, I'm so sorry. We can talk to Mac and find a flight in the morning, but for now we need to get some sleep."

"Okay," she agreed, snuggling up to her husband, who held her tight.

"We're gonna get through this together, honey." He assured her, before they both drifted off to sleep.

**A/N Believe me, this is just the beginning of Lindsay's problems! Review and I'll post the next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 1

12 hours later they were on a flight to Montana. Lindsay refused to let go of Danny's hand the whole time (not that he was complaining) and kept blurting out things like "make sure you don't say anything about the Yankees. My brothers both hate them with a passion." And "tell my mom how good she looks. She's lost 20 pounds and wants everyone to notice."

"Lindsay," Danny said, "Calm down, I know your family. And besides, your mom is beautiful. How else could she have had such a gorgeous daughter?" Lindsay blushed, never used to such comments, even after being together for a year and a half.

"You'll have to meet Lily." Lindsay said, naming her older sister who hadn't been able to come to the wedding.

"Have to?"

"I don't wanna talk about her right now." Lindsay said flatly.

"Why? I'm sure she's beautiful, too." Danny joked, giving Lindsay a kiss on the cheek. She forced a smile, but inside a feeling of dread arose. She knew Danny loved her, but Lily was a model, and she always got what she wanted, even if it meant stealing him from her only sister.

"Something wrong?" Lindsay had momentarily forgotten that Danny could read her like a book.

"Not really," Lindsay half lied, "It's just that Lily is very competitive and she always gets what she wants. You're right, she is very beautiful, much prettier than I'll ever be."

"Lindsay, " he said, "You're the only one for me. Your sister should be able to see that I'm taken."

"That's never stopped her before," She sighed. "It seems like every boyfriend I had in high school dumped me fore my sister."

"Well, you and I both know that'll never happen." Danny said, nuzzling her neck.

Lindsay giggled.

"I love you, Montana," he half whispered, being very serious.

She smiled at his old nickname for her. "You haven't called me that in a long time."

"Well, I thought it fit since we're in-" the pilot talking over the intercom cut him short.

"Welcome to Montana, folks. Please fasten your seatbelts, we will be landing shortly."

Lindsay and Danny both burst out laughing.

Much to Lindsay's relief they were on the ground within minutes. They met up with Lindsay's mom, got their baggage and drove to the hospital

Lindsay hesitated outside her father's hospital room. "Go ahead," Danny said giving her hand a squeeze "I'll give you a few minutes."

She gave him a grateful smile and pecked him on the lips before entering the room.

Her dad was sleeping when she walked in, but he awoke instantly when she sat down in a chair next to his bed. "Hey, Bug." He said, the two little words painful, his breathing labored.

Tears pricked Lindsay's eyes at the use of her childhood endearment that was reserved exclusively for her dad. "Hey dad," she said, trying to regain her composure.

"I…had to see…you before….I could pass…on," he said, each word very difficult for him.

"Oh, dad! Don't talk like that! You're gonna be just fine!" Tears streamed down her face.

"I'm…dying, Bug." He managed to say. "I…love you."

"I love you too, dad."

"I…want to talk…to Danny." Her father informed her.

"Ok, Dad, I'll get him," she told him. Kissing his forehead, she stood up and got Danny, just like she said she would.

"You…take care…of my baby girl…you hear me?"

"Yes, sir, I will."

"Promise me."

"I promise, Mr. M. I'll never let anything or anyone hurt her.

"Good." With that Samuel Monroe took his last breath. They monitors he was hooked up to started beeping like crazy. Nurses rushed in, followed by Lindsay's mom and family. Sobbing, she threw herself into Danny's arms.

**A/N Yeah, it's short, I know. Sorry. I'll update as soon as I get a few more reviews. hint hint**


	3. Chapter 2

Lindsay was curled up into a ball on the couch at her mom's house. Upon their arrival at home, Lindsay had asked for some alone time, which everyone had granted her. Danny was hesitant to do so, wanting to comfort his wife and relieve the pain she was in and tried to convince her to let him stay with her. After a few moments of silence, however, he surrendered and retreated to the kitchen.

Lindsay didn't even look up when the front door opened. From his station at the kitchen table Danny heard the creak of the couch as someone else sat down and he moved closer so he could see what was going on.

A very pretty woman put her hand on Lindsay's arm in a failed attempt to comfort her.

"Don't touch me," Lindsay snapped, sitting up to face her sister. "It's not like you care anyway."

"How can you say that, Linds? I just got in from L.A. I had a-"

"A shoot." Lindsay finished. "What else is new?" she asked sarcastically.

"I had to work, Lindsay!"

"So did I, Lily! But I managed to fly all the way from New York! I can't believe you didn't even have the time to come see your dying father!"

"How is he?" Lily asked quietly.

"He's DEAD, Lil! He died an hour ago, but you were in L.A prancing around in front of a camera in a bikini!"

"Oh."

"You're father is dead and all you can say is 'oh'? You're even more shallow than I thought." Neither of them said anything. "You ruined my wedding, you know." Lindsay broke the silence.

"But I wasn't even there!" Lily protested.

"Exactly my point. I would think that after all you had done you'd at least come to my wedding. Your wedding day is supposed to be the happiest day of your life. And although I was marrying the man I love, it was one of the **worst** days of my life. Do you know why?" Tears sprang to Lindsay's eyes and she didn't even wait for her sister to answer. "Because it was the day that I realized that my sister cared more about herself than she did her family." Lily opened her mouth to say something. "No! Lindsay said forcefully. "You're going to listen to me now. All my life I've let you do the talking, but now it's my turn. You called me 20 minutes before the ceremony started to tell me you weren't coming. Do you know how embarrassing that was for me? Not only did you stand me up, but I didn't even have a maid of honor because it was too late for me to find a replacement. You let me down, Lil, just like you always do.

"I DO NOT!" screeched Lily. "I've done everything for you! Who paid for you to become a CSI, Linds, who? Who paid for you to move to New York? Who paid for your apartment?"

"Who was responsible for breaking my heart when every last one of my boyfriends were stolen from me? Who never even remembers to send a card on my birthday? Who said she couldn't come visit me for Christmas, claiming to be sick and then appeared in five different magazines out partying on Christmas Eve?" Lindsay was fuming. "Your idea of love is buying apartments and paying my way through college. You don't know what love is, Lily, which is why you didn't come to my wedding and why you didn't rush to your dying father's bedside like the rest of us did. That is the reason why it is so so difficult for me to love you."

"How dare you!" Lily screamed, slapping her sister in the face.

Danny couldn't take it any longer. "Don't you touch her!" he ordered, stepping out of the kitchen and into the living room where the two women were now standing, both having jumped up sometime in the heat of their argument. "Before he died, I promised you dad that I'd never let anyone hurt Lindsay. I didn't think that the one person I'd have to protect her from would be her own sister." He told Lily icily. He put his arm around Lindsay. "C'mon, baby, let's go for a walk."

Later that night, things had cooled off between the sisters, but they still refused to speak to each other. Lily was helping her mother in the kitchen and Lindsay and Danny were snuggled up on the couch watching TV with her brothers when the doorbell rang.

"Linds, can you get that?" her mother shouted from the kitchen.

Sighing Lindsay got up, out of the warm confines of her husbands arms and opened the door. "What are you doing here?" she asked when she saw who it was.

"Good to see you too, Linds. How've ya been?"

**A/N I know, I know, it's short and has a cliffhanger…don't hurt me! Please! I'll update soon!**


	4. Chapter 3

A/N Just a little recap of last chapter…Lindsay and Lily got in a fight, and Lindsay just opened the door….

"Mark? Is that Mark?" asked Nancy from the kitchen. She rushed over. "Oh it is Mark!" She exclaimed "Why didn't you invite him in sweetie? That's rude!" Nancy pushed her daughter out of the way and beckoned to Mark. "Come it! Come it!"

"No reason," Lindsay said sweetly, "It's just that he ruined my life and was the sole reason I moved a couple thousand miles away." With that she gave an exaggeratedly fake smile and returned to the couch to snuggle with Danny some more.

"Who's Mark?" Danny said into her ear when she sat back down.

"Ex-boyfriend." Lindsay stated, obviously not wanting to give any details.

"There's gotta be more to it that if he ruined your life and caused you to move to New York." Danny pried.

"I don't want to talk about it, Danny."

"But Linds-" he didn't finish, as Lindsay had gotten up and walked out of the room.

"Give her some time to be alone," suggested Lindsay's brother Ricky.

"Like I'm gonna do that," Danny quipped, "Last time I did that, it ended with her getting slapped in the face by her sister." Danny go up and set out to find his wife.

She was sitting on her bed in the room she grew up in when he found her. He sat down next to her and put his arm around her. "I won't understand if you don't tell me, honey." He said

"We were engaged," she began sighing. "I was completely and totally in love with him, or at least I thought I was. Long story made short: I came home from work one day and caught him in bed with my sister. At least all the other guys I'd dated had the decency to dump me before moving on to Lily. Anyway, I was obviously furious, so I packed up and moved here. Lily paid for everything, trying to buy my love back and it worked for a while. I forgot about everything until she didn't show up for my wedding. Even after that I tried to forgive her but…well, it'll never be the same between us."

"I'd say that I'm sorry, but I'm not," at the shocked and slightly hurt expression on Lindsay's face Danny added, "If he hadn't cheated one you then I'd never have met you."

"You've got a point there," Lindsay managed a half smile.

"Of course I do." Danny leaned in to kiss his wife and Lindsay responded eagerly. As their kiss deepened Danny repositioned himself so that he was facing Lindsay and pulled her onto his lap.

"Danny! Lindsay! Dinner-" Nancy Monroe opened the door. The couple pulled apart immediately and Lindsay slid off of her husband's lap. "Oh. Sorry." Lindsay's mom said. " Dinner will be ready in 5 minutes. Mark's staying, isn't that great honey?"

"Yeah mom, just lovely," her mother didn't hear the sarcasm in her daughter's voice and smiled before closing the door. "My mom just adored Mark, if you couldn't tell," Lindsay told Danny rolling her eyes.

"Who cares? You're mine now, and I'm not the jealous type anyway." Danny stood and pulled Lindsay to her feet, stealing a quick kiss before leaving the room.

"Ah, too bad. I think it's cut when guys get jealous," Lindsay joked as the walked down the hall.

The entered the ketches hand in hand. Danny left Lindsay's side and walked right up to Mark. "I don't believe we've been introduced. Danny Messer, I'm Lindsay's husband." He stuck out his hand, which Mark hesitantly shook.

"Husband?"

"Yeah, we got married about 6 months ago."

"Huh. Nobody ever told me."

"Forgive me if you weren't first on my list of people to tell," Lindsay said appearing by Danny's side. "Although I guess I should be thanking you."

"And why is that?" Mark asked through clenched teeth.

"Because if it weren't for you, I would never have met the love of my life," Lindsay replied in mock sweetness, kissing Danny thoroughly on the lips.

Mark's face turned an ugly shade of purple. "You know what, Nancy?" he stammered, "I think I should let you guys have some family time tonight. Maybe I'll come by tomorrow."

"I think that's a fine idea, Mark," Lindsay agreed.

"But Mark!" Nancy began to protest, but he was already gone.

Lindsay smiled triumphantly.

A few minutes later as they sat down to eat; Lindsay felt tears prick her eyes when she spotted the empty chair at the head of the table. After the afternoon's events-her fight with Lily, seeing Mark again- she's all but forgotten about her father's death. Looking around the table she realized that the rest of the family had too. As they began to eat Lindsay saw tears in everyone's eyes, even Lily's. "I think," she said, breaking the reflective silence, " that dad would want us to remember all the happy memories we have of him, not sit here crying and feeling sorry for ourselves."

Everyone agreed, and they shared a lovely dinner full of laughter and joy, remembering the great man that Samuel Monroe was.

**A/N I love this chapter! It was sooo fun to write! Don't worry, I'm not done yet! I'm not really one for spoilers, but let me just say that you haven't seen the last of Mark…**


	5. Chapter 4

Two days later Lindsay she a few tears as she slipped into a strapless black dress. She thought it was a little too sexy for a funeral, but as the life as a CSI wasn't too glamorous, it was all she had to work with.

Danny whistled as he walked into the room in a suit and tie. "I know we're going to your father's funeral, baby, but I just gotta say that you look gorgeous."

Lindsay smiled. "You don't look bad yourself," she said. He walked over to her and pulled her into his arms. "I don't think I could have gotten through this without you, Danny." She whispered into his ear.

"I'm always here for you, Linds. No matter what."

The funeral was short and sweet, just the way her father would have wanted. He was a get to the point and be done kind of guy. Lindsay cried through the whole thing and held Danny's hand to the point where he thought he might lose circulation in his fingers. The worst part was seeing Mark, who stood next to Nancy like he was a member of the family.

"I don't know who he thinks he is," Lindsay grumbled as she and Danny walked to the car. "He's not a member of this family, and he isn't welcome."

"Calm down, Linds, he's not threat to any of us. I'm sure that he just hangs around because he's realized how stupid he was to have hurt you."

Lindsay rolled her eyes, but her heart beat a little faster. He always knew the right thing to say, and that made her love him even more. She stopped walking suddenly. "Oh no." She groaned, "I forgot my purse."

"Do you want me to get it?" Danny asked.

"No, it's ok. I'll go get it. I can catch up." She pecked him on the lips. "Be right back."

She scampered off to go and find her purse. As she leaned over to pick it up she heard footsteps behind her. A gloved hand reached out and clamped itself over her mouth to muffle the scream that came next.

Danny waited by the car for a grand total of 3 ½ minutes before going back to find his wife. He found her purse, but no Lindsay. "Lindsay?" he shouted. "Linds, I found your purse." He waited a minute, and when no answer came he started to panic. "Lindsay? LINDSAY?!"

Two hours Danny sat at the table in his mother-in-law's kitchen, willing the phone to ring. Nancy sat across from him, being consoled by Lindsay's older brothers, Ricky and Justin.

They had gone to the police after looking for Lindsay for nearly an hour.

"I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can't do until she's been gone for 24 hours," the officer had informed them.

Danny knew this, yet he still protested. "But she's missing NOW! She might be hurt! What if she needs help?"

"I'm sorry, but you of all people should know the policy."

So now, here they were, all staring at the phone, mentally telling it to ring. And then it did.

Four hands shot out to try and grab it first, but Nancy came up with the phone.

"Hello?" she answered primly, surprisingly calm for someone who had been sobbing quite hysterically just moments before.

"Let me talk to Danny." The deep voice on the other end of the phone ordered

With shaking hands, Nancy handed the phone off to her son-in-law.

"What have you done with my wife?" Danny demanded.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" the voice said mysteriously

Danny thought he recognized the voice, but couldn't be sure. "Do you want money? I'll pay you anything you want if you just give me my Lindsay back."

"I don't want money, you idiot. But I will tell you what I do want. I want you, Danny. I want you to go to the Callahan & Sons warehouse. It's about 3 miles north of the cemetery where your dear wife's father is buried. I want you to come alone, no back up, no bugs, nothing. You're life for her freedom. It's a very simple request, you know."

"Under one condition," Danny replied without even a moment's hesitation.

"And what's that?" the cold voice asked mockingly.

"I want to talk to Lindsay. Right now."

"Ok," the man said, after thinking it over a moment. He was quiet then, and Danny could hear as loud footsteps crossed the floor, and opened a door. He almost lost his patience when he heard a small, terrified voice.

"Danny?"

"Oh, Lindsay, baby are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, Danny. Don't do what Mark says! I'll find a way out of this!"

Mark? He knew that the voice sounded familiar. Danny was aware that Mark still loved- no, loved wasn't the right word…wanted. Mark wanted Lindsay, he knew this, but didn't every think that Mark would go as far as kidnapping Lindsay! "Baby, it's the only way."

"But Danny-"

"I love you, Montana."

"I love you too!" Lindsay managed to shout before Mark snatched the phone out of her hands.

He heard Mark's voice again. "I'll see you in an hour." The line went dead.

A/N Ah, I love torturing you so. It brings such joy to my life….jk. Nah, I'll update soon. You know, I coulda sworn that I'd already posted this chapter…so sorry for the wait. That's why. Review!

**Lia**


	6. Chapter 5

Exactly an hour later, Danny hesitantly entered the warehouse that Mark had told him to go to. It was empty, and his footsteps echoed loudly in the hollow building. Looking around, he couldn't see Mark or Lindsay. He kept walking until he saw a door. Danny remembered hearing Mark open a door- the hinges had squeaked rather loudly- right before he talked to Lindsay. He reached out and turned the doorknob. When he pushed open the door, it gave a satisfying squeak, and sure enough, there sat Lindsay, bound to a chair, with Mark hovering behind her.

"You're right on time," Mark said, checking his watch, "Impressive." Lindsay tried to say something, but Mark had gagged her in addition to tying her to a chair. Danny felt his heart begin to beat faster, anger and rage sweeping over his body at the sight of his wife; bound and helpless, knowing that there wasn't anything he could do. Danny's life for Lindsay's freedom; that had been their agreement

"Let her go," Danny ordered, finding his voice finally. "That was the agreement, remember? You said that if I came here you'd let her go."

"Yes, I did, Daniel," Mark said coldly, "I'll let her go, but not yet. First, I'm going to kill you. She can watch as you die, then I will let her go."

Lindsay's eyes got as round as saucers when she heard this, and she began to struggle against the thick ropes that were binding her to the chair.

"No!" Danny yelled, "You will let her go right now! Then you can shoot me, cut my head off, I don't care, but I have to know that she's safe first!"

"I don't think so," Mark sneered, pulling a gun out of his jacket. "Say goodbye, Danny." He raised the gun up so that it was pointing directly at Danny's heart and fired. Tears streamed down Lindsay's face and were absorbed by the cloth that was keeping her quiet as she watched her husband fall to the ground. Mark turned his back on Danny's immobilized body and began to untie Lindsay. "I'm a man of my word, Lindsay. I'm going to let you go." He informed her, as if saying that was going to fix everything he had done.

Lindsay looked at the lifeless body of her husband, slightly confused. There was no blood. Why wasn't there any blood? Mark had shot him, there was supposed to be lots and lots of blood. She was a police officer! She saw these things all the time, and there was ALWAYS blood! Then, suddenly she understood. Danny sat up, rubbing his head. Quietly, he crawled over to where Mark had dropped his gun and picked it up. "You never said that I couldn't call the police, Mark. You just said that they couldn't come with me. " Mark turned around, in shock. Smirking, Danny lifted up his shirt, revealing the bulletproof vest underneath.

Mark stepped away from Lindsay, and pounced on Danny, trying desperately to grab the gun back. He made a swipe for it, knocking it out of Danny's hands and sending it sliding across the floor so that it landed at Lindsay's feet. Mark had untied her hands, but there was still a rope around her waist tying her to the chair. She struggled to untie the knot, aware that Danny wouldn't be able to hold Mark off much longer. Although Danny was in perfect shape and was very strong, he was very slight compared to Mark. Mark was a big, beefy guy, four or five inches taller, and a good fifty pounds heavier. Lindsay got the knot untied and had picked up the gun when Mark got loose of Danny. Standing up, the pointed the gun at his head.

"You wouldn't," Mark accused.

"You're right, Mark. I won't kill you because I want you to suffer. I want you to pay for what you've done to me and Danny for years and years in a lovely prison cell." She did pull the trigger, however, but she shot him in the leg to make sure that he wasn't going to be a threat to them.

As Mark moaned in pain, Danny rushed over to his wife, who was sobbing hysterically and pulled her into his arms, holding her so tightly that she could hardly breathe. When she finally pulled back slightly to look into his face, she saw that he was crying as well. "I love you so much!" he said through his tears, "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you!"

"I love you too!" she sobbed, as he pulled her to him once again.

A few hours later, Danny lay next to Lindsay, his head propped up by his hand, just watching her sleep. She had fallen asleep almost immediately after their return from the police station. Mark had been taken into custody, and although they recommended it, Lindsay refused to go to the hospital and get checked out. "I'm fine!" she insisted. "I just want to go home, Danny, please just take me home." After the traumatic events of the day, Danny couldn't refuse.

Lindsay was normally a peaceful sleeper and Danny enjoyed watching her rest serenely, but not this time. Today she slept fitfully, tossing and turning, sweat glistening on her skin. Suddenly, with a cry of fear she awoke and sat straight up. She began to cry, and Danny sat up as well, pulling her into his arms once again. "I keep seeing his face!" she cried, "He's always there, haunting me."

"Shh…it's ok, baby, I'm right here. I'm not going to let anything happen to you, I promise." Danny soothed, but he was scared too. He had promised her- and her father- that he would never let her get hurt, but he had. He had let her get kidnapped by her crazy ex-boyfriend. What kind of husband was he? He let her down when she needed him the most.

Several minutes later, Lindsay had calmed down a bit, and they both lay back down. Lindsay snuggled up against her husband's chest, and he wrapped his arms around her. "I love you," she murmured. "I couldn't live without you."

"Why?" Danny couldn't help but ask, "I promised I'd never let anything happen to you, but I did! How can you still love me after I let you get kidnapped?"

Lindsay twisted around so that she was facing her husband. "It's not your fault, Danny!" she assured him, "And how can I not love you? The deal Mark made was you for me, wasn't it? You didn't even hesitate for a second! Danny, he could've killed you, and you were willing to let him just to save my life!" She kissed him gently on the lips. "I'll always love you, Danny. No matter what happens."

"Me too, baby. No matter what."

With that, Lindsay made herself comfortable, and fell they both fell asleep.

A/N It's still not over! The fun part (to write at least) might be, but I have a few more tricks up my sleeve! Review review review!

**Love,**

**Lia**


	7. Chapter 6

A/N This next chapter takes place a month after Lindsay was kidnapped. Danny and Lindsay are now back home in New York.

Danny and Lindsay sat quietly eating their dinner. It was obvious that something was bothering Lindsay, and her husband didn't want to pressure her into saying anything. In the month that had passed, they had grown closer, but Danny felt that something about his wife had changed. She was no longer the bubbly, out going person that she had once been, rather she kept to herself more and wasn't as willing to talk about her feelings.

"Danny, I'm pregnant," she blurted out suddenly.

Danny sat there, unable to register his wife's sudden news. "Pregnant? Like as in a baby?"

"No, Danny, a monkey," she said sarcastically. "Yes, a baby." She bit her lip nervously; unsure as to how he'd react. They had brushed the subject of having children, but Danny hadn't really expressed a desire to have a family right away. Relief flooded her as she saw a smile break out onto her husband's face.

"I'm gonna be a daddy!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah, you are." Lindsay confirmed. She hesitated, "Danny, are you really sure that you want a baby? I mean, it'll make it difficult with our jobs and stuff." Inside, Lindsay knew that she wanted a child more than anything, but didn't want to express this desire if her husband didn't want a baby.

"Yes, Lindsay, I really do. I've actually been thinking about that a lot recently. I mean, I know that I want the Messer name to be kept alive, and what better way is there to do that than to have kids?"

"Good," she sighed. "I really, really want a baby."

"Well that's good, honey, 'cause it looks like we're gonna have one."

Lindsay grinned. "Yes we are." Danny stood up and walked over to his wife, pulling her up into his arms.

"I'm really happy, Linds." He whispered.

"I am too." She kissed him sweetly on the lips. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Danny murmured into her ear.

* * *

Later that night, after the dinner dishes had been cleaned up, Lindsay sat curled up in Danny's arms. The T.V was on, but neither of them was really watching. Danny could tell from the expression on his wife's face that something was still bothering her. After she had told him about the baby, he thought she'd be at ease, but she wasn't. There was obviously something that she wasn't telling him. He didn't want to pry, but he was nearly exploding with curiosity at what it was. Having a baby is pretty big news, so what could top that? What could make her so uneasy, now that she had told him what was going on.

"Linds, what's wrong?"

"Wrong? Nothing." She said distractedly.

"Lindsay," he chided, "I can read you like a book, don't forget that. There's something wrong. Why won't you tell me?"

Tears sprang to her eyes, and he felt terribly guilty. Seeing Lindsay cry broke his heart, but when he was obviously the reason for her distress he felt so much worse. "Baby, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

"No, no, it's not you," she said sniffling, "It's just…. I want to tell you, but it's hard."

"You don't have to tell me if you're not ready," he assured her.

"Yes, I do. I have to tell you." She took a deep breath. "It's possible that the baby isn't yours."

**A/N Aren't I just the most terrible, evil person ever? Review and I'll update soon!**


	8. Chapter 7

"_It's possible that the baby isn't yours."_

Danny pulled away from her in shock. "What? Not mine?" he stammered, "is there somebody else, Lindsay? Is there something I should know about?"

"No!" she insisted, tears flowing freely down her cheeks. "No, it's nothing like that!"

"Then what is it?" Danny asked getting slightly angry.

"I didn't want you to take me to the hospital after you found me because I didn't want you to know!" she sobbed, "I never thought this would happen! I thought that we could just forget all about Mark and never have to deal with him again! But then I missed my period, and I got a home pregnancy test, and it was positive. I went to the doctor last week and they confirmed it. " She rambled on and on, sobbing.

Danny didn't understand. He sat there quietly for a moment trying to understand what she was saying to him. "He raped you, didn't he?" he said suddenly, "Mark, he raped you."

Lindsay just nodded and threw herself back into Danny's arms. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you," she cried, "But I didn't want you to think that I was gross or dirty or something."

"Baby, I'd never think that!" he replied, shocked at her reason for keeping this important piece of information from him. "I love you!" he reminded her. "Remember the night after I got you back from Mark? I said that I'd love you no matter what, and it's the truth! No matter what happens, I'll always be here for you. Do you understand?"

She nodded against his chest and he pulled her onto his lap. She sat there for a long time until her sobs finally died down and her breathing returned to normal. "I love you, Danny." She said drowsily. "Thanks for understanding."

"C'mon, Linds, it's time for bed." He said, smiling down at her.

"I'm too tired to get up," she complained.

In response, Danny lifted her into his arms and carried her to their bedroom, where he laid her gently on the bed. He sat on the edge of the bed, just watching her, admiring her strength to have dealt with all that heartache and grief all on her own. When she appeared to be asleep, he stood up quietly, but the moment he did, her eyes popped open and her hand reached out to grab his arm. "Don't leave," she pleaded.

"Ok, I won't." he promised, walking around to the other side of the bed and laying down next to her. She scooted closer to him and he wrapped his arms around her tightly. "Goodnight, Mommy." He teased.

"Night, Dad." She teased back before drifting off to sleep.

* * *

"Do you want to find out?" Lindsay asked spontaneously the next morning, as she and Danny were getting ready for work.

"Find out what? If the baby's a boy or a girl?"

"Well, that too," Lindsay responded, "But I meant whether the baby's yours or Marks." She added quietly.

Danny put his hands on his wife's shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "I don't care either way," he said, "Even if the blood test says that the baby is Mark's, it'll be my baby. I'll love him or her the same no matter who is the biological father."

Tears pricked her eyes at her husband's sensitivity. "I want to know," she admitted.

"Then we'll find out," he said, kissing her before turning back to the mirror and beginning to shave.

* * *

Danny stood outside the crime lab, watching his wife process some evidence from their latest case. She walked over to the microscope and peered into it, examining some blood. She stood up and caught his eye. He smiled at her, and beckoned her to come out to him. She held up a finger, telling him to wait a minute. Lindsay finished examining the blood and stepped outside.

"What's up?" she asked.

"We need to tell Mac." Danny said.

"Tell him what?"

"About the baby."

"What baby?" Flack came up behind them and Lindsay winced. She hadn't wanted to tell everybody, not yet at least.

Danny glanced at his wife and she nodded. "Lindsay's pregnant," he informed him. The proud look on Danny's face flooded Lindsay with unconditional love for him.

"Congratulations," their coworker said, punching Danny lightly on the shoulder, a "guy thing" that Lindsay would never understand. Why did males insist on congratulating by maiming the other guy? Flack chit chatted for a moment and began to walk away.

"Flack." Lindsay said, causing him to turn around. "Don't say anything to anyone, yet." She requested.

Flack cocked his head to the side in confusion. "It's complicated," Lindsay stated, "Just give us a week or so, and then we'll tell everybody else."

"But we're going to tell Mac right now," Danny added, earning him a glare from Lindsay.

"Yes," Lindsay agreed reluctantly, "we're going to tell him now."

As Flack walked away, Danny grabbed Lindsay's hand and led her to Mac's office. Knocking softly on the open door, they walked into the room. Mac was sitting behind his desk with his back towards the young couple. "Danny, Lindsay, what can I do for you. Is it about the Swanson case?" he asked, "I thought you guys figured that out."

"Oh, we did," Lindsay said, sitting down across from Mac.

Danny closed the door and took a seat next to his wife. "Something came up," he began slowly, "and we thought we should talk to you about it."

"I don't understand," Mac said.

Lindsay took a deep breath and Danny squeezed her hand reassuringly. "I'm pregnant," she said. "And the baby might belong to Mark."

"Mark? Isn't that the ex-boyfriend who abducted you in Montana?" Mac asked.

"Yes," Lindsay whimpered, "he raped me."

"Oh, Lindsay, I'm so sorry." Mac said, "Why didn't you tell me earlier."

"I only found out last night," Danny said, a trace of bitterness in his voice.

"Oh."

"We're going to find out who the baby belongs to. I made an appointment this morning, I'm going to the doctor tomorrow afternoon, so I was wondering if I could just work a half day."

" Yes, yes, of course. Danny, you should take the afternoon off as well. I think that you should be there with her." Danny gave Mac a look that clearly said 'thank you.'

"Alright. Thanks, Mac." Lindsay stood up to leave. "You coming?" she asked Danny.

"Danny, I've gotta talk to you…it's about a case." Mac said.

"Ok." He looked at Lindsay, "Go on ahead, Linds. I'll meet you for lunch."

Lindsay left the room. As soon as she closed the door Mac began speaking. "How are you going to deal with this? I mean, what if the baby isn't yours?"

Danny felt that this was a slightly personal question coming from his boss, but he figured that since they had come to him about the baby, who could affect both of their work ethics, he should answer him. "It won't matter to me," he said truthfully. "I don' t care if the doctor says that Mark is the father, the baby that Lindsay is carrying is my son or daughter. No matter what."

"Good," Mac said, "I wouldn't want this tearing your marriage apart."

"Mac, she was raped! It's not like she could help it or anything!" Danny felt anger rising in his chest. "No matter what I'm going to be there for her. I wouldn't care if you fathered the baby or Flack did, it's MY child. I love my wife, and I love my child." Danny stormed out of the room. This wasn't good. He knew that he shouldn't have lost his temper on Mac like that, but he felt that his boss was being disrespectful to Lindsay.

Taking a deep breath, he wandered down the hall in search of his wife.

**A/N Yeah, so this chapter is slightly longer and not a big cliffie, although you still don't know who the baby belongs to….**


	9. Chapter 8

Lindsay sat in the doctor's office, gripping Danny's hand, anxiously waiting for the test results to come back. It was one of those things where she couldn't decide whether she wanted to know or not. It almost might be better not to know, she thought, because if she didn't know she could just pretend that it was Danny's baby. If she test results came back negative, meaning that her child belonged to Mark, she didn't know if she'd be able to stand it.

Danny glanced over at his wife, giving her what he hoped was a reassuring look. It truly didn't matter to him who the child belonged to, but just watching Lindsay made him uneasy. He knew that she'd be devastated if Mark had fathered the baby. There was a tiny thought in the back of his brain about what it would be like to raise another man's child. And, the poor kid! Would he have the guts to tell him or her that they were a child conceived by rape?

The door opened with a squeak and both of their heads shot up to see a nurse walk in, a clipboard in her hand. 'She has that look on her face,' Lindsay mused, 'The "I'm so sorry to have to give you this news" look. The same look I have when I'm talking to a victims family.'

"The tests came back positive," the red headed nurse said, "Mr. Messer, you are the father of this baby."

Tears of relief clouded Lindsay's vision as her husband took her into his arms and held her tight. The nurse, wanting to give them some privacy quietly slipped out of the room. Danny planted kisses all over Lindsay's face telling her how much he loved her. "Oh, Danny, I'm so happy!" she said through her tears.

"Me too, baby, me too."

A little while later the delighted couple walked out of the office hand in hand. As they strode to the subway station neither of them could wipe the incredibly proud, yet relieved, grins off of their faces.

* * *

"Have you thought about names at all?" Lindsay asked later that evening while they were making dinner.

"Ah, a little bit. I mean, when you told me about the baby one of my first thoughts was that we were gonna have to name it."

Lindsay laughed. "Yeah, that's kind of important. I mean, I wouldn't want to give my child a name that would be a burden to carry around for the rest of their lives, like Delfina or Eugene."

"Delfina?"

"Yeah, there was a girl who moved to Bozeman my senior year in high school named Delfina. She went by Fina but some people called her Delfi or even worse Delfi the Dolphin. She was a really nice girl though."

Danny chuckled, "Well, if it's a girl, promise me we won't name her Delfina."

"I promise," she gave him a peck on the lips before going back to stirring the pasta. "You know, for a girl I kind of like Olivia or Brooke or maybe Adrienne."

Danny raised his eyebrows. "I'm a girl!" she laughed, "Girls are constantly thinking of names for future children!"

"Okayyy."

"So…what do you think? Do you like any of them?"

"Brooke. Olivia's ok, but not Adrienne…it's kind of…I don' t know, fancy."

"Yeah, I see what you mean. It's kind of long, too. What about boy names?"

"All I've got is Samuel…after your dad."

Tears pricked Lindsay's eyes. It was so sweet of him to think of something like that. "Yeah, I'd like that." She said, "Unless you think of something you like better." She added hastily, not wanting him to pick that name if he didn't really like it.

"Well, I'll think about it, but I really do like that name." He smiled at his wife.

The next day Danny came home with a surprise for his wife.

"1,000 Names for Your Baby" she read. "Oh, Danny, you didn't have to!"

"Yes, I did." He said kissing her. "I want our baby to have a name that he or she can be proud of."

"The Messer last name should make them proud enough," Lindsay giggled as Danny lightly swatted her on the back.

That night they both sat curled up on the couch thumbing through the book. "Leatrix? Ledell? Lefty? Honey, do you think Lefty is a boy's name or a girl's name?" Lindsay asked, laughing.

"It's a boy's name, babe…don't you see the little blue M next to it? M is for male, Linds." He teased. She punched him in the arm and went back to scouring the book.

"I say no to M names." Lindsay said as they reached that section in the book. "With a last name Messer I just think that it'll be a mouthful. You know like, Matthew Messer or Madelyn Messer…. just too much M."

"Yeah, I see where you're coming from." He agreed.

The rest of the night was spent laughing at ridiculous names and taking note of the few they actually liked. 'This is what planning for a baby is like,' Lindsay thought, 'I think I'm going to like this.'

**A/N I have a few things to say…**

**I know that's a lame ending to a chapter, but I couldn't think of anything else. Sorry**

**I have NO IDEA whether it is possible to prove the paternity of a child while still in the womb. However, this being CSI we're talking about, I decided anything is possible.**

**Yes, Lefty and Leatrix and Ledell really are names **

**I want to know your opinion….what should Baby Messer be named?**


	10. Chapter 9

Lindsay put a hand on her once flat stomach, just thinking. It wasn't until just now that she realized how terrified she was of having this baby. She wanted the baby, she really did, but the idea of supporting the life of another human being scared the living daylights out of her.

Danny walked into the bathroom just then. "Morning, honey." He said. He saw the look on Lindsay's face. "What's wrong?"

"I'm getting fat, Danny."

"You're not fat, Linds, you're having a baby."

"Well, I'm still fat."

Danny sighed. "This isn't about getting fat is it?"

"No," Lindsay said, beginning to cry, "What if I'm a bad mom?"

"Oh, Linds, baby you're gonna be a great mom!" Danny assured her, taking her into his arms.

"How do you know? I don't have any experience with little kids! I'm the baby of the family. I never did much babysitting as a teen…. I don't think I can do this!"

"Yes you can. I'm not sayin' that it isn't gonna be hard, 'cause it probably will. But we're gonna get through this together. I'll be here with you every step of the way. Everything is gonna be fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Lindsay, I'm sure. You're ready for this."

"Ok, ok." She said taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "It's the hormones…they're getting me all worked up all the time."

"Not your fault." He reminded her.

"I know, but I just feel bad for crying all the time and putting you through this."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

* * *

"Danny," Mac said, coming up behind him. Danny was processing some evidence in the crime lab, and was alone until Mac had entered the room.

"What?" Mac and Danny's relationship had been slightly strained ever since their argument about the baby.

"Lindsay's beginning to show." Mac said simply.

"You think I don't know that? She's my wife, Mac."

"I know, I'm just saying that you need to think about making a formal announcement sometime soon."

"I'm aware of that, Mac, but I don't know if the time is right. Lindsay's still a little hesitant to let everyone know."

"And why would that be?"

Danny sighed, not wanting to have to fill his boss in on every feeling his wife had. "She's scared. She's scared about how people will react, she's scared that she won't be taken seriously as a cop, but most of all she's terrified that she won't be a good mother."

Mac shrugged. "That stuff is none of my business, it's between the two of you. But as your boss I'm telling you that you need to let everyone know."

"Ok. Fine."

* * *

"What were you and Mac talking about earlier?" Lindsay asked her husband later that day when they were eating lunch.

"When?"

"You were in the lab. I was walking down the hall and saw you guys talking."

"Oh…. Mac says we gotta tell everybody."

"Now?"

"He said soon."

"Danny, we haven't even told our families yet."

"I know."

"I'll talk to Mac after lunch."

"You sure you want to?"

"No. But I know I have to."

"Alright. I'll be right beside you the whole time."

* * *

Later that afternoon the whole team was gathered in a conference room. It was rare that Mac called a team meeting, so they all chatted amongst themselves wondering what was going on. Flack, on the other hand, kept to himself. He had noticed that Lindsay was beginning to show and figured that this meeting had something to do with her.

"Ahem," Mac cleared his throat to get the attention of his team. "I called you guys here today because some team members of ours have an announcement to make." He nodded at Lindsay and Danny.

Biting her lip, Lindsay stood up and faced her co-workers. "I'm pregnant." She said quickly.

Everybody smiled and began to congratulate her and Danny.

"What is it?" Hawkes asked.

"We're not sure yet." Lindsay answered, still uncomfortable because of all the attention. "I have an appointment next week and we're going to find out."

After a few more minutes of excitement, Mac told everybody to get back to work. Stella approached Lindsay for the first time then. "Congratulations." She said hugging her. "This is so exciting!"

Lindsay smiled. "Yeah, it is."

"Have you picked out any names?" Stella asked as they walked down the hall together.

"There's a couple that we like, but we haven't picked one yet. It'll be easier to look for a name when we know if we should be looking for a boy or girl."

"True…. I'm happy for you." Stella said, as they parted.

"Thanks." Lindsay smiled, as she watched her friend walk away. She sighed, relieved that she had been relieved of the burden of telling her co-workers. She then realized that she had yet to tell her mother. 'Oh boy.' She thought. 'This isn't gonna be fun.'

**A/N Ok…so my chapters have had slightly lame endings recently. I just can't figure out the best way to end them. It seems like my ideas are all running together making chapters confusing. Whatever. I've decided on a name for Baby Messer. But you don't get to know it! Ha ha so there. You'll have to keep reading if you want to know what he/she is going to be named. Coming up next: Lindsay tells her mom and the happy parents to be get some surprising news!**


	11. Chapter 10

Lindsay lay on an examination table holding Danny's hand tightly. The doctor was getting the ultrasound ready and it was taking forever. "Alright," she said finally. "I'm all ready." She pushed Lindsay's shirt up a bit and began the ultrasound.

"What is it?" Danny asked eagerly.

"I can't tell yet," Dr. Addler responded, causing Danny's face to fall.

"Be patient, Danny," Lindsay chided.

"I know! I'm just so excited!"

Lindsay smiled and squeezed her husband's hand.

"Oh." Dr Addler said suddenly.

"Is something wrong?" Lindsay heard the alarm in Danny's voice.

"No, no…" the doctor trailed off. "You're having twins!" she announced.

"Twins?" Lindsay gasped. "Like, two?"

"Yes, Mrs. Messer, two. A boy and a girl."

"A boy and a girl! Lindsay, this is great!" Danny exclaimed.

Lindsay smiled, but wasn't so sure if this was as great as Danny thought it was. She was scared to death about one, how was she going to handle two? 'Stop thinking that way!' she told herself. 'Danny will help me. We're going to do this together.' She took a deep breath. "Yeah, Danny, this is great!" she agreed. "Wow. Two."

* * *

"Linds, are you ok?" Danny asked as he let them into their apartment.

"Yeah, just a little…surprised. Two. It's going to be a lot of work, Danny."

"Yeah, I know, but it'll be fun.

"I'm sure it will be." Lindsay said, a trace of sarcasm in her voice.

"Lindsay…."

"I don't know, Danny. How am I supposed to learn to be a good mother with two? I mean isn't your first child supposed to be training you or something?"

Danny chuckled, "Well, I don't know about that, but I guess if it is training then you'll definitely be ready if we decide to have more."

Lindsay was grateful that Danny didn't press the idea of more children on her right away. She figured that he knew that she needed a while to get used to the idea of being a mom. She was ecstatic at the idea, but once the reality of it sank in her sense of euphoria faded away. Now she was just scared that she'd do something wrong or bring her children up badly or something.

"We need to tell your mom," Danny said, interrupting her train of thought.

"Yeah, you're right. Oh boy."

Danny handed his wife the phone and she dialed her mother's number. "Hello?" Nancy answered.

"Hey, mom, it's Linds."

"Hey, honey! I haven't heard from you in a while!"

"Yeah, well I've been really busy," Lindsay half lied. She hadn't called her mom in such a long time because every time she talked to her it reminded her of Montana, and Mark.

"What's up?"

"Well, actually, I have some news for you." She glanced up at Danny, who gave her a reassuring smile.

"Really? What kind of news?"

"Well, mom, it looks like you're going to have your first grandchildren."

Nancy gasped. "Really?"

"Yeah, mom, I'm pregnant."

Nancy was quiet for a moment. "Wait a minute!" she said suddenly. "Did you say grandchildren?"

"Yeah, I'm having twins. Danny and I went to the doctor today. I'm having a boy and a girl."

"Oh! Lindsay! This is so great! I'm so excited! When are you due?"

"The end of May," Lindsay answered.

Lindsay and her mom talked for a few more minutes before Nancy announced that she wanted to talk to Danny.

"Here," Lindsay said handing him the phone.

"What?"

"She wants to talk to you."

"Ok." Danny took the phone. "Hey, Mrs. M." he answered.

"Oh, Danny, how many times do I have to tell you to call me Nancy? Besides, come May you will be the father of my only grandchildren!"

"Ok, Nancy."

"Now Danny, I want you to listen and I want you to listen hard." Danny gulped. "You take care of my baby girl, you hear me? You make sure that she's always comfortable and you give into everything she says. That means that when she wakes up at two o'clock in the morning wanting a peanut butter and jelly sandwich you get her one. And if you don't have peanut butter, by golly Danny, you go and buy some."

"O-ok." Danny said, slightly taken aback.

"My Samuel gave in to my every whim when I was pregnant with each one of my children and I expect you to do the same. Pregnancy isn't easy, my boy, not easy at all, so you are to be supportive all the time."

"I will, Nancy, don't worry."

"You'd better! After what happened with Mark at Samuel's funeral, Lindsay doesn't need any stress at all."

"I understand that. I'll be here with her every step of the way."

"I know you will, Danny, you're a good boy."

"You know what?" Danny was prompted to say, "I'm going to fly you out here, so you can be here with Lindsay when the babies come, and so you can help her out a bit after they are born. I'll only be able to take so much time off of work and I have the feeling that she's going to need some help."

"That would be wonderful, Danny, thank you." Nancy said sincerely. "There's nothing I want more than to be here for the birth of my first two grandchildren."

"I know, Nancy, I know."

After several more minutes of chit chat, Danny handed the phone back over to Lindsay so she could say goodbye.

"Love you mom!" she said before hanging up. Upon doing so, she promptly threw her arms around Danny's neck and kissed him hard on the lips.

"Not that I'm complaining," Danny said when they finally came up for air, "but what was that for?"

"For inviting my mom out here." Lindsay said kissing him again. "For being the perfect husband, for always knowing what to say, just for being you."

Danny held his wife in his arms for the next few minutes, neither of them saying anything. "I love you," Danny whispered.

"I love you, too."

"I love you more," Danny said nuzzling her neck.

"No, I love YOU more," Lindsay giggled.

"Listen to us!" Danny joked, "We're about to become parents and we sound like teenagers talking on the phone!"

Lindsay laughed and pulled Danny down for another kiss. "Well it's true," she murmured, "I do love you more."

"I don't think so!" he laughed.

"Ok, ok, let's compromise. We both love each other equally." She teased.

"Sounds fair to me."

**A/N Ok, I like this chapter. This story has been really angsty and so I HAD to add that fluffy bit at the end. And, btw, I love Nancy. She's one of my favorite character's I've ever written. She's just so fun! Lol…I love her! **


	12. Chapter 11

Lindsay sighed as she picked up her purse. She started to leave her office, but glanced around the room longingly, at everything from her wedding picture on the desk to her computer chair – the most comfortable one she'd ever had. Today had been her last day on the job. Dr. Addler had insisted on her going on maternity leave, while Lindsay protested, saying that she could work right up until the delivery. "Not bed rest, Mrs. Messer, just maternity leave. You need to settle down. Working this hard isn't good for the babies," she said. "You can still be up and about but not nearly as much as you have been."

Danny knocked on the open door and walked in. "You ready to go?"

"No." Lindsay replied bluntly.

"Honey, I know this is hard for you, but it's for the best. You know that."

"I know…but what am I going to do with all my time? I mean, the babies aren't due for nearly 3 weeks."

"You never know, they might come early."

"Whatever. Let's just go." They were halfway out of the building when Lindsay stopped. "Do you know where Stella is? I didn't get to say goodbye to her."

"I think she already left, Linds. Sorry." Lindsay detected one of those small mischievous grins of Danny's, but didn't say anything.

Lindsay didn't speak on the way home, still grumpy about not being able to say goodbye to Stella. She tapped her foot impatiently when Danny fumbled with the key. Finally, he swung the door open, and she entered the apartment ahead of him. She flipped on the light, to see a bunch of people. "SURPRISE!" they shouted.

Startled, Lindsay squealed and jumped back, hitting Danny in the chest. He held out an arm to steady her.

Laughing, Stella ran up to Lindsay and hugged her. "Figured you'd need some cheering up, since today was your last day." She whispered into Lindsay's ear.

Tears pricked the younger girl's eyes. "Thank you so much, Stella. This means a lot to me!"

Stella turned to Danny. "Get out of here!" she scolded. "This is a baby shower, no men allowed!"

Danny chuckled, "Ok, ok, don't shoot me." He kissed his wife briefly on the lips. "I'm meeting Flack, Hawkes and Mac at the bar down the street."

"Alright," she said, "Just don't bring back any skinny, non-pregnant hotties!" she joked.

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Once Danny had left Stella dragged Lindsay into her living room where she saw the few female friends that she had in New York – Sheila, the young, hip Australian hairdresser who lived downstairs, May, the sweet, middle aged widow who lived next door, Peyton from the crime lab, and Stella, obviously. She was also shocked to spot her college roommate Marianne, best friend since 3rd grade Miranda, old friend/fellow cop from Bozeman P.D. Adrianna, her mother, and most surprising of all, Lily.

Lily approached her sister cautiously. "I'm so sorry," she said, tears forming in her eyes, "about everything! I wanted to make it up to you, so I came here when Danny called. If you want me to go I understand, but I really want to be here for you from now on."

In response, Lindsay grabbed her sister and hugged her hard. After a few tears were shed, they broke apart and Lindsay greeted the rest of her friends, which involved a whole lot more squealing, hugging and crying. Finally everything settled down, and the ladies all sat down, slightly cramped in the small living room.

"Time for presents!" Stella cried.

It wasn't until then that Lindsay noticed the beautifully wrapped gifts piled on the coffee table, with even more stacked underneath. "Oh guys!" she exclaimed, "You didn't have to!" She picked up the nearest gift anyway. The card said that it was from Adrianna, and she unwrapped it to find matching pajamas – one blue, one pink - that read: "Cradle Robbers beware…my mommy and daddy are cops!" Lindsay cracked up, thinking it was hilarious, even though the term "cradle robbers" wasn't even used in the right context. "I can't wait to show these to Danny!" she said, holding them up for everybody else to see.

The next present was from Sheila. Opening it she found a gift certificate to the salon where her Australian neighbor worked. "Get a massage, or a hair cut or something," she said, "It'll be relaxing, and we all know that come May you're gonna need some relaxation!" Everybody chuckled. Also in Sheila's package were color coded pacifiers and bottles, which would make Lindsay's life SO much easier.

From May, Lindsay received handmade coupons good for 3 nights of free babysitting and some cute outfits.

Nancy and Lily spared no expense when shopping for Lindsay and her babies. Among their numerous gifts were a double stroller, boxes and boxes of wipes and diapers and enough outfits to get the babies through a year, as well as little onsies that depicted an outline of Montana. "Mom!" Lindsay gasped, "You didn't have to do all this!"

"Yes I did, honey, they're my first grandchildren. If they're going to live so far away from me you should at least be able to tell them 'Look at all this stuff Grandma got you!' Besides, I had forgotten how exciting baby shopping is!"

Stella presented Lindsay with two adorable mobiles to hang above the babies' cribs. Lindsay also received an assortment of stuffed animals, clothes, onsies, and blankets, as well as two baby bouncers.

"Thank you guys SO much!" Lindsay exclaimed when she was finally finished with all the gifts. "Danny and I will hardly have to buy anything!" she joked, although it was partly true.

The ladies all settled down and talked then, covering every topic that had to do with babies, from giving them baths to changing dirty diapers. "Hey," Miranda piped up suddenly, "have you guys decided on names yet?"

"Yes," Lindsay said after a moment's hesitation, "but you don't get to know them yet. We're pretty sure of the names we want, but we're going to wait until after they're born to make it official, you know in case we see the baby and think that the name is all wrong for him or her."

"Makes sense," Marianne agreed, "I mean, you wouldn't want your child to look like a Jessica or something and be named Sarah." Everyone laughed.

"Hey!" Lindsay remembered, "Do you guys want to see the babies' room?"

All the ladies got excited and started giggling like little girls. They all stood up and followed Lindsay to the guest room turned nursery that she and Danny had labored hours on. When they all crammed into the small room a reverent silence filled the four walls, as though the babies had already been born and were sleeping. The walls had been painted light yellow – a neutral color, they had decided – and the dresser, two cribs and changing table were white. There were 6 drawers in the dresser, two across and three down and the knobs of the drawers on the right were painted pink, the ones on the left were blue.

"It's beautiful," Lily breathed, expressing the opinion of all of the other ladies.

"It's kind of plain," Lindsay retorted.

"It's still beautiful, so…. peaceful," Peyton piped up. They all stood there admiring the room for a few more minutes.

"I'm getting kind of claustrophobic," Adrianna said from the center of the group, causing everybody to laugh and file slowly out of the room.

Soon everybody began to leave. May and Sheila both hugged Lindsay, offering their congratulations one more time before going back to their respective apartments. Peyton left soon after that. Miranda, Marianne, and Adrianna had checked into a hotel about a block away before coming to the shower. "We didn't want you to feel overcrowded," Marianne explained.

"How long are you guys staying?" Lindsay asked.

"Our flight leaves Friday morning," Miranda said.

"That only gives us two days together!" Lindsay complained.

"Montana calls!" Adrianna joked as they left the apartment, leaving only Stella, Nancy and Lily.

"Thank you so much, Stella!" Lindsay exclaimed, "You have no idea how much this means to me!"

"Hey, thank that husband of yours," Stella told her, "He's the one who had the idea to invite all your friends from Bozeman."

"Still, thanks," Stella hugged Lindsay one more time before heading to the door, "I'll miss you," she said before stepping into the hallway, "At work. I'm gonna have to fend for myself with all those guys around."

Lindsay smiled, "I'll tell Danny to make sure they're nice to you."

"Ok," Stella laughed, "I'll call you tomorrow."

"So…" Lindsay began returning to where her mother and sister sat. "As you can see we don't have a guest room anymore. The couch pulls out into a bed, but I won't be offended if you want to go to a hotel."

"The couch will be just fine," Lily said, surprising Lindsay. "Come on!" she protested at the shocked expression on her sister's face, "I'm not THAT stuck up."

"No comment," Lindsay replied, giggling.

Lindsay was chatting with her mother and sister when Danny arrived home. Lindsay ran over to him and gave him a big hug and kiss.

"How'd it go, baby?" he asked grinning.

"Wonderfully. Stella told me that it was your idea to invite Miranda, Marianne, and Adri." Tears pricked her eyes. "Thank you so much. It meant a lot to me."

"I know," he said, hugging her again.

Nancy and Lily turned around, pretending to unpack their suitcases, in attempt to give the young couple some privacy. Soon, the two of them came over to the ladies and sat down on the edge of the bed that had been pulled out of the couch. "Thanks you guys," Danny said, "It meant a lot to both of us that you came." Nancy and Lily turned back around to face them.

"I know that I haven't been the best sister," Lily began tearfully, "But I really want to be a part of your lives now, and the babies' lives, if they ever decide to come out," she bit her lip waiting for their response.

"That sounds good," Lindsay said quietly.

"Lily, I know that we didn't meet on good terms, or leave on them, so I'd just like to say that I'm sorry, and that I'd like to start over," Danny added holding out his hand, which she shook. "Danny Messer, I'm the lucky guy who somehow got this beautiful girl next to me to marry me," he introduced himself.

"Lily Monroe, I'm the sister of that beautiful woman who you got to marry you." She said back.

They all talked for a while until Lindsay began yawning. "I think I'm gonna turn in," she said.

"I'm right behind ya," Danny added. "G'night," he said taking Lindsay's hand and leading her to their room.

"I'm pretty tired, too, mom," Lily said.

"Me too," Nancy yawned.

Soon, all the lights were out and the apartment was quiet.

It wasn't until about 2 A.M that moved again occurred in the home. Danny shuffled to the kitchen and began searching through the cupboards, still half asleep.

"Looking for something?" Nancy said coming up behind him and causing him to jump, nearly peeing his pants.

"Oh, Nancy, you scared me!" he exclaimed.

"Something wrong?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah, we don't have any peanut butter," Danny said pulling a coat over his sweats and grabbing his wallet and keys, "We have bread and jelly, but no peanut butter."

Nancy cocked her head, confused.

"Lindsay's hungry," Danny explained, "She wants a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, so I'm going to go get some peanut butter. Why don't you go back to bed?"

"Ok," Nancy said, but as soon as the door shut, she began to laugh, glad that her baby girl picked such a fine man to be her husband.

**A/N Whew. That's the longest chapter yet! It was fun to write though, and I just had to add that little peanut butter sandwich thing at the end. Remember what Nancy had said about that? Anyway, review please, and the next chapter will come soon. Up next: Lily meets a certain somebody that might convince her to visit her sister more…**


	13. Chapter 12

"Lindsay? Are you ready yet?" Nancy said, knocking softly on her daughter's bedroom door.

"No, mom, I'm not, and I'm never going to be ready!" Lindsay replied crossly.

"Honey, are you ok?"

"No, mom, I'm fat and ugly and I don't want to go"

Nancy pushed open the door and walked into the room where she stood in her pajama pants and a tank top staring at the contents of her closet. "Lindsay, there's a difference between being fat and being pregnant. You're pregnant, honey, a big belly is to be expected. You're growing a human inside of yourself for goodness sake!"

Lindsay sat down on the edge of her bed. "Everybody else is gonna look good and I'm gonna look terrible!"

"Lindsay," her mother chided, "You're beautiful, you know that, and nobody's gonna tell you otherwise."

"Maybe not out loud, but they'll all be thinking it. Just go away."

Nancy left the room and wandered out to the living room where Danny and Lily were waiting, Danny in a suit and tie and Lily looking as gorgeous as every in a little red dress.

"Danny, we have a problem," Nancy said.

"She's not going into labor, is she?" Danny asked, slightly terrified.

"No, nothing that serious," Danny gave a sigh of relief, "She's having a bit of a wardrobe problem."

"Uh, Nancy, I don't really think that I'm the best person to come to for stuff like that. I'm not into the whole fashion thing."

"Yeah, well she needs you right now. Go convince her that she's beautiful in whatever she wears so we can go. We were supposed to meet everybody else 15 minutes ago."

"Ah, I got it." Danny went into his bedroom and sat on the bed next to his wife. "Linds, it don't matter what you wear, you know that. You look perfect in anything."

"No, I don't! I mean, just look at Lily! Everybody else is gonna look at least as good as she does, because they're all perfect and skinny and I'm gonna look like crap!"

"Lindsay, you're also the only one who's growing two babies inside of you."

Lindsay sniffed and laid her head on Danny's shoulder. "I know." She said.

"Ok? It's gonna be alright, Linds, I promise. Everything's gonna be great, you're gonna look as gorgeous as ever and we'll have a great time."

"Ok," Lindsay sighed, picked a black maternity dress out of her closet and slipping into it. She picked up a pair of shoes, "Just give me a second to do something with my hair and makeup."

"Alright."

"She's coming," Danny reported when he met Nancy and Lily back in the living room. "She's fixing her hair."

"Thanks, Danny," Nancy said, "We couldn't have done it with out you."

A few minutes later, Lindsay emerged from the bathroom, looking radiant, just like her mother and Danny had said she would. "You look beautiful," Danny said, taking her hand.

They all left the apartment and piled into the waiting cab outside, the driver slightly grumpy, "It's about time," he grumbled.

They arrived at the restaurant and were greeted by Mac and the rest of the team, as well as Lindsay's three friends from Bozeman. Mac had arranged a goodbye dinner for Lindsay and her friends. The ladies had spent the last day shopping and catching up, and were dreading their departure the next morning. The only ones who were staying were Nancy and Lily.

Mac led them to a party room that he had reserved days in advance near the back of the restaurant. They all settled down into their seats, and somehow, Lily ended up next to Flack. "I don't believe we've met," he said turning to her.

"Lily Monroe," she introduced herself, "I'm Lindsay's sister."

"Oh, so you're the model." He said.

"Yes, I am. And who might you be?"

"Don Flack," he said, "Pleased to meet you."

"Likewise,"

After a night of laughter and fun, they all prepared to leave. Stella hugged Lindsay and Danny, and Flack gave Lily his number. "Call me," he practically begged.

"I might just do that," she teased, both of them knowing full well that she planned on calling him the moment she got her hands on her cell phone, which she had accidentally left at Lindsay and Danny's apartment.

"AHHHHHH" Lily squealed after pulling her sister into the bathroom and locking the door. "I think I'm in love! I'm gonna have to come back to New York soon, now won't I?"

"Oh, I see how it is, you'll come to New York for Flack, but not for your sister."

Lily's face fell, "Lindsay, I said I was sorry!"

"Lighten up, Lil, I was kidding! Seriously!

Lily sighed, relieved. "He's SOO hot!" she exclaimed.

"Um, Lil, I work with him."

"You work with Danny, too," she retorted.

"Yeah, well I'm also married to Danny."

"I really like him, Linds!"

"Lily," she said, "you just met him, be careful! I mean, I know Flack's a good guy, but I just don't want you to rush into a relationship. It's never worked for you in the past."

"Don's different, though!" she insisted, "I didn't steal him from anybody, he came onto me, and he's a cop!"

"Ok, Lil, just be careful." She grinned, "Just don't break his heart, or else work will be terrible for me!"

"I'll try my best."

Laughing the two girls left the bathroom. Danny stood patiently outside, waiting. "What was that all about?" he asked.

"Oh, nothing," Lindsay giggled, earning a weird look from Danny.

Nancy woke up at about 3 in the morning to the sound of the refrigerator opening and closing. Groggy, she got up to find Lindsay sitting at the table beginning to eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. "I can't sleep anymore," Lindsay said, "And I have such bad cravings for peanut butter."

"I know, I was awake the other night when Danny went out to buy some more peanut butter," Nancy said.

"He went to buy peanut butter?" Lindsay asked, and then felt very guilty. "It's bad enough that he got up in the middle of the night, but to go out and buy peanut butter?"

"He loves you, Lindsay. It's so obvious every time he looks at you, he'd do just about anything for you."

"He'd better love me!" Lindsay joked, "I mean, I married him and am carrying his children." She put a hand on her stomach. "They're kicking," she said, grabbing her mother's hand so that she could feel. "It's the most amazing feeling."

"I know. It's great isn't it?"

"It's like they're constantly reminding me that they're there, as if I could forget!"

Nancy laughed. "You're going to be a great mother, Linds, I just know it."

Lindsay sobered. "I'm scared, Ma. What if I'm not? What if I do something terrible to them or bring them up wrong?" 

"You won't, Lindsay. You have lots of support from me, and Lily, and Danny and your friends. We're here for you."

"I know, but I'm scared."

"I was scared, too, Linds. And I hate to say it, but the feeling doesn't go away. I was still terrified of doing something wrong when you came around."

"Thanks mom," she said sarcastically, "That really helped."

"I'm just warning you Linds, it's gonna be hard, but you can do it!"

"Ok."

"And I'll be here for the first few weeks, and Danny's here, and you've got May next door."

"I know, it's just so hard being responsible for somebody else's life. I mean, they're so vulnerable. They rely on me for everything. They can't do anything on their own!"

"I know, honey, I know," Nancy gave her daughter a hug.

Lindsay finished her sandwich, and cleaned up the mess she had made. "I better get back to bed." She said.

"Good night, honey."

"Night, mom."

**A/N So much bonding in this chapter. If I named my chapters, this one would be called Bonding. Lol…ok…so review please! Up next….the moment we've all been waiting for!**


	14. Chapter 13

Lindsay lay in her hospital bed crying. "I want my babies!" she cried, "Why won't they let me see them?"

"Shh…baby, it's ok," Danny said from the chair next to the bed. "They just have to run some test and stuff." He reassured her, even though he really had no idea. He reached out for her hand and gave it a squeeze.

"Did you see the look on the doctor's face?" she demanded, "And why weren't they crying? I thought that babies were supposed to cry when they're born? What does that mean? Were they not breathing or something?"

Lindsay's water had broken two weeks before the babies were due. She had been rushed to the hospital where she promptly gave birth to two tiny, premature babies. It had been nearly 5 hours since she had given birth, and she had yet to hold either of her children. Lily and Nancy had gone off to find a doctor, inquiring as to what was going on.

"Baby, you need to calm down," Danny soothed, stroking her hair. "I'm sure that everything is fine. Your mom and Lily will come back soon, and the doctor's will let you see your babies."

"I haven't even seen their faces," she sobbed, "They don't even have names!"

Danny got up out of the chair, and sat on the edge of his wife's bed. She scooted over and he lay down next to her, taking her into his arms. "It's ok…. shh…it's ok."

Lindsay was exhausted, and fell asleep in her husband's arms within minutes.

She awoke to the sound of crying babies. Two nurses carried the children into the room, both of the babies screaming at the top of their lungs. Lindsay and Danny both sat up immediately. "Are they ok?" Lindsay asked timidly.

"Yes," the blonde nurse assured them, "We had a little scare at the beginning when they wouldn't breathe but they're ok now."

"Can I hold them?"

"Of course." The nurse handed Lindsay a little pink bundle, who immediately stopped crying once she was in her mother's arms. A tiny, red face poked out of the blanket. Her eyes fluttered open, and Lindsay saw the most beautiful blue eyes. The other nurse handed their son to Danny.

"Oh, Danny," Lindsay said beginning to cry again, "They're so beautiful!"

"Yeah, baby, they are," Danny agreed, tearing up himself. "They're beautiful just like their mama."

The nurses left the room, wanting to give the new parents some alone time with their children.

"So what do you think?" Lindsay sniffed, "About their names?"

"I think the names we picked out suit them just fine," Danny answered.

"Me too," Lindsay agreed. "Danny, I just can't get over it! They're all ours. They belong to us! And they're so beautiful."

"I know, Linds, they are. They're just perfect."

Nancy and Lily returned just then, chatting, and were immediately silenced when they saw the parents gazing lovingly down at their newborn babies.

"Mom! Lily! Look at them! Aren't they beautiful!"

Nancy and Lily both agreed. "They're perfect, Linds," Nancy said, "The girl looks just like you did when you were a baby."

"Really?"

"Yes, they do."

"Do we get to know their names?" Lily asked.

"Yes," Lindsay smiled. "Mom, Lil, meet Brooke Elizabeth Messer."

"And Samuel Blake Messer," Danny finished.

Nancy felt tears rush to her eyes. "Oh, Lindsay! You named him after your daddy! It means so much to me!"

"It was actually Danny's idea," Lindsay said, modestly.

"Oh, can I hold him? Please?" Nancy begged.

"Of course," Danny carefully handed his precious baby boy of to his grandma.

"Welcome to the world, Sammy-" she stopped, "Is it alright if I call him that?"

"Yeah, we were planning on calling him Sam, anyway." Lindsay said. "Do you want to hold Brookie, Lil?"

"Can I?"

"Of course, you are her aunt, after all."

"I remember when you were born," Lily said taking Brooke from her mom, "I was so excited to have a baby sister. Mom's right, she does look a lot like you did."

Lindsay snuggled up to Danny as she watched her mom and Lily cradle the babies reverently. "I love you," he whispered. "You gave me the best gift that anybody could give me. I'm so proud of you, Linds."

"I love you, too," she pecked him on the lips.

The next day the whole team piled into Lindsay's hospital room, quiet for once in their lives. Flack immediately found his way to Lily who squealed, "I'm an aunt! Can you believe it?"

Flack smiled. "It's pretty amazing, isn't it?"

"So," Stella said, taking command, as usual, "Are these babies going to remain nameless, or are you going to tell us?"

Lindsay laughed and gestured to the baby in her arms. "This, my friends, is Samuel Blake Messer."

"And his sister, Brooke Elizabeth," Danny said lifting Brooke up in his arms slightly.

"Oh, Linds, they're perfect!" Stella shrieked.

"The babies or the names?" Lindsay teased.

"Both. Can I hold one?"

"Of course. Who first?"

"Oh I don't care, just five me one of these adorable children."

Lindsay handed her Sam, and Stella cooed and cuddled the baby. "Oh, he's so beautiful, Linds, he looks just like his daddy!"

"Ha! I told you!" Lindsay smirked at Danny. "I told him that a million times, but he won't believe me!"

"It's true, Danny," Mac said, peering over Stella's shoulder to get a better look at Sam. "He looks just like you."

Danny tried his best to hide his proud smile, but couldn't. "Here, Mac," he said, "Hold Brooke. You'll be in love with her after only 5 seconds of her being in your arms, I guarantee it."

Mac looked hesitant to take the child into his arms. It was obvious that he didn't have much experience with babies. "Here, Mac, let me help," said Stella, who had handed Sam to Hawkes. "Take her like this," she demonstrated. "Now you try." She handed the little girl to her boss. "Make sure you support her head," she warned, "She can't hold it up on her own, yet." All eyes were on Mac, and sure enough, after about 5 seconds, he began to glow in a way that nobody had ever seen him glow. A smile filled his face.

"Hello, Brooke," he whispered, "They're right, it's impossible not to fall in love with you!" he stared down at the baby in awe. "She's beautiful." Mac said to the proud parents, and everybody swore that they could see tears glimmering in his eyes.

"Ok, guys," Mac said after the babies had all been passed around. "I think we should let them get some rest now. Besides, some of us have work to do." Everyone groaned.

Filing out, they all offered their congratulations once again. Lily kissed Flack on the cheek, and he reluctantly left with the rest of them. "I'll call you when I get off work," he muttered.

A few days later, the hospital released Lindsay and her two children. They loaded their kids into cars seats and took a taxi home, followed by Nancy and Lily in a separate taxi. Upon her arrival at home, Lindsay found her house plastered with signs that read: "It's a Boy!" and "It's a Girl!" as well as a few that said "It's Twins!" or "It's a Boy AND a Girl!"

Lindsay glanced at her mother.

"Sheila and May," she explained, "I had nothing to do with it."

Lindsay just laughed. Sure enough, both Sheila and May came over later that day to see the babies for themselves and offer congratulations to the happy couple.

Lindsay woke up in the middle of the night to go feed her children and realized that Danny wasn't in the bed.

She crossed the hall to the nursery and saw him sitting in the rocking chair, Sam in his arms, singing softly to the child. He looked up when Lindsay entered the room, and blushed, slightly embarrassed. Lindsay lifted Brooke out of the cradle and admired the sleeping baby, knowing that within a few minutes, she'd wake up screaming bloody murder. "I'm so happy, Danny," Lindsay gushed. "I knew I wanted kids, but I didn't expect it to feel this good!"

"I know what you mean," he said, "I get the most amazing feeling when I look at them. I'm just so proud, y'know?"

"Yeah, I know."

"We're gonna have to watch out for Brookie here in a coupla years."

"What do you mean, Danny?" she questioned.

"She's gonna be a heartbreaker, just like her mama." He said, smirking.

"Nah, she'll be ok. If any boy ever tries to hurt her, she'll have a big brother and two cops for parents to protect her." Sam had been born 10 minutes before Brooke was.

Brooke began to stir, and Lindsay knew she was going to wake up soon. "They need to be fed," she whispered.

"Ok," Danny said, "Wouldn't want them to go hungry."

Lindsay laughed. "Why don't you go back to bed?" she asked.

"No, I'll stay up with you. If you can't sleep then I shouldn't be able to either." Lindsay couldn't help but smile at his sensitivity. She plucked the bottles of breast milk off of the dresser and handed one to Danny.

"Make yourself useful," she said, coaxing her daughter to drink the milk. Lindsay watched in awe as Brooke's tiny lips grabbed a hold on the bottle and sucked eagerly.

Soon the two children were fed, and their parents had laid them gently into their cribs. Danny wrapped his arm around Lindsay's shoulder and they just stood there admiring their children. Finally, Lindsay yawned and Danny began guiding her to the bedroom. "Let's try to get some sleep, Mommy," he teased. They both crawled into bed, and Danny pulled his wife up against his chest and within minutes, both of them were sleeping soundly.

**A/N Your welcome. The babies finally came. I was going to wait longer, but I just couldn't help it. Lol…k, so review please, and the next chapter will be up soon…**


	15. Chapter 14

By the second week of motherhood, Lindsay had pretty much gotten the gist of it – get up, feed the babies, put the babies to bed, feed them again, change their diapers, try to get some sleep, fail to get some sleep, feed the babies – it went on an on. Although she was exhausted, Lindsay loved every minute of it. It made her feel so responsible to be keeping these babies alive. The thing that had terrified her in the beginning thrilled her now. She could tell that Danny felt the same way, and surprisingly enough, Lily did as well. The model kept begging Lindsay and Danny to go out so that she could have the kids all to her own. But, even though she was her sister (not to mention the fact that her mother would be nearby) Lindsay still didn't feel comfortable leaving her children. Instead, Lily went out on dates with Flack. Lindsay laughed every time she witnessed Lily getting ready, as she was always terrified that she would look terrible, when in reality, she would look good in a potato sack.

Nancy and May became good friends in the weeks that the Montana native spent with her daughter. They bonded over the fact that they had both lost their husbands, and May gave Nancy advice on how to move on. Lindsay was eternally grateful for the support of her next-door neighbor and was constantly expressing her thanks.

"Y'know Linds, I think that Lily's right," Danny said as they crawled into bed, attempting to get some sleep.

"About what?" Lindsay muttered sleepily.

"We need to get out."

"But what about the babies?" Lindsay asked.

"Linds, we've got about a thousand people who would jump at the opportunity to watch the little angels," he teased.

"I know," she said, rolling over to face him. "But I just feel bad leaving them. I'm their mother, I feel like I should be here."

"I know Linds, but they're nearly a month old. And besides I have to go back to work next week, so we won't be able to spend as much time together anymore."

"What?" Lindsay's eyelids had been drooping, but now they shot back open.

"Linds, we both knew this was going to happen. Mac's been real good about giving me time off, but I have to go back. Mac needs another team member and we need a steady income. Two brand new babies aren't too cheap, babe."

"I know," Lindsay sniffed, willing herself not to cry. She couldn't cry, not now, because then Danny would feel guilty for leaving and she'd feel guilty for making Danny feel guilty for leaving and soon everybody would be feeling incredibly guilty and miserable. "I guess you're right," she said slowly, "it would be nice to get out for an evening."

"Ok," Danny said, pulling her closer to him. "We can talk about it tomorrow," he yawned.

And then they were asleep.

"Oooh! I'm going to have so much fun!" Lily squealed Friday night as Lindsay and Danny were preparing to leave.

"You know where to bottles are? And their pacifiers? Don't forget that Brooke only likes the pink pacifier, she refuses to use any of the other ones, so let her use that one. And Sam loves to be rocked." Lindsay sputtered nervously.

"Lindsay, it's gonna be fine," Lily laughed, "I know what I'm doing and mom will be right next door with May if I need her."

"Alright," Lindsay said, taking a deep breath. "Ok, I can do this."

"Come on, Linds, we've gotta go," Danny said, "Out reservations are for 7."

"Ok, just let me say goodbye to my babies." She picked Brooke up out of her bouncer and kissed her on the forehead. "You be good for Aunt Lily, ok baby?" she put her back down and picked up Sam. "Now, no throwing hissy fits when it's time for bed, ok bud?" Lindsay carefully put her baby boy back into the bouncer. "Ready," she announced turning back to her husband.

"Finally," he grumbled good-naturedly. He took Lindsay's hand and started pulling her out the door.

"Lily," Lindsay stopped in the open doorway. "No visits from friends," she warned with a sly smile, "Specifically tall, handsome male ones by the name of Don Flack. I want your full attention on the kids."

"Yes, mom," Lily giggled, "Now get out of here."

"You think Flack's handsome?" Danny asked once they had closed the door behind them, a hint of jealousy in his voice.

Now there was that jealous Danny that she loved so much. "Not nearly as handsome as you are," Lindsay said, pulling him down for a kiss.

Danny smiled, "Now that's what I want to hear." He slung his arm around her shoulder and together they headed for the elevator.

Once in the elevator Lindsay captured her husband's mouth in hers for another kiss. He began to protest – this was a public place, anybody could get on the elevator at anytime – but he stopped himself when he felt Lindsay's tongue probing at his lips, begging for entrance, which he most graciously granted.

"Lindsay…" he warned after a few minutes of delicious kissing.

Lindsay tore her lips away from him for the briefest moment to see what floor they were on. "We still have 7 floors to go, and besides, this is a slow elevator," she murmured against his lips.

"True," he said, and then went back to kissing his wife. He pulled her close to him, realizing how much he had missed her in the past month. They'd been together nearly all day every day but so much of their attention was focused on Brooke and Sam that they had little energy left for each other. He had received a peck on the lips every now and the, and the occasional hug, but that way about it.

"I've missed you," Lindsay voiced his same feelings when they reached the 2nd floor and finally pulled away from him, smoothing her hair. "So much of my attention is on the babies, that I forget about you sometimes." She sounded guilty.

"Don't feel bad, baby," he said, "you're a new mom and the babies are a lot of work. I understand that."

"Thanks," she squeezed his hand as the elevator doors dinged and opened and they stepped out into the lobby.

"Good evening, Mr. And Mrs. Messer," Sid the doorman said as they left the building, "How are the children."

"Just great, Sid, thanks for asking," Lindsay called over her shoulder as Danny hailed a cab. Lindsay climbed into the waiting taxi and immediately snuggled up to Danny when he slid in after her. "Remind me to thank Lily when we get home," she said, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I will," he laughed, "I'll thank her too."

"Savor this moment," Danny told his wife as they sat at a table near the back of the restaurant.

"What do you mean?" Lindsay asked looking up from her menu.

Danny grinned "The next time we come to a restaurant we'll probably have two fussy babies with us."

"You've got a point there, Danny boy," she teased, "But have I mentioned the fact that one of my baby shower presents from May was the promise of 3 nights out in which she would provide free child care?"

"You know what," Danny joked, "I think I like May. In fact, I think I like May a lot."

"She's in her 40's Danny," Lindsay chided, "And besides, you've got two babies to take care of."

"And a beautiful wife," he added.

"Nah, I can take care of myself," Lindsay declared.

"Whatever you say, my dear." He teased. "But just so you know, I'm ready to fight anybody who so much as lays a finger on you," his tone was light and joking, but Lindsay knew that there was truth behind this statement. She knew with a surety that Danny would do anything for her or their children, and she loved him for that.

A waiter approached their table, "May I take your order?"

**A/N Yep, so that's where this chapter is going to end. Just a little hint, reviews are very near and dear to my heart, so I'd appreciate some. K, Up next…we find out one of Lily's secrets…dun dun dunnnnnn **


	16. Chapter 15

Lily stood up from where she was kneeling in front of the toilet and wiped her mouth with her hand. She headed over to the sink, pulled out her toothbrush and vigorously brushed the taste of vomit out of her mouth. No matter how many times she did this to herself, the taste always bothered her. 'You deserve it,' she told herself, 'you got too confident and ate WAY too much. Don won't like me anymore if I get fat.' This was pretty much crap, of course. Lily was skinny to the point of being TOO skinny. But, that's what the modeling industry did to a person. They drill it into your head, that average isn't good enough, you have to be spectacular. Normal weight is too heavy, you have to be skinny, skinny, skinny to go anywhere. Lily wanted to go somewhere. She had never even gone to college, so her looks were all she had, unless a high school diploma could get her some high ranking job and a prestigious company. Lily may not have been the sharpest tool in the shed, but she knew that the best she could do on a high school education was probably flipping burgers at McDonald's.

Lily walked out of the bathroom and wandered into Lindsay's living room, flopped down on the couch and turned the TV on, surfing the channels to see if there was anything good on. There wasn't. She was bored out of her mind. Lindsay, Danny and her mother had taken the twins on their very first outing, but Lily had faked a stomach ache to get out of it, claiming she just wanted to relax. Now, she thought that she should have gone, the exercise would burn calories. She sighed, and as if on cue her cell phone chirped. Checking the caller ID she smiled when she saw that it was Don.

"Hey, Don," she answered as sexily as she could.

"Hey, Lil," he said. She loved the way he shortened her name, as if they had grown up together or something. "You doing anything?"

"Right now?" she questioned.

"Right now," he confirmed.

"No, why?"

"I want to take you swimming."

"Swimming? Don, why in the world would you want to take me swimming?"

"Because, Lily," he said, faking exasperation, "It's good cardiovascular exercise." he paused. "Plus it would involve you in a bikini."

She giggled. "I knew you had an ulterior motive."

"You gotta problem with that?"

"Absolutely not," she answered.

"In that case, I'll be over there to pick you up in 10 minutes."

"OK, I'll see you then."

Lily scrambled around through her many suitcases to find her bikini. She came up with 3 different ones - a pink, a black and a red one. Lily was the type of girl who always came prepared for anything. Unfortunately for her, this obsession of hers caused much grief in choosing which one to wear. She picked up her cell phone and speed-dialed Don. "Pink, black or red?" she asked when he picked up.

"For what?"

"Just choose one."

"Alright, pink."

"Thanks," she hung up the phone and decided that he had made a good choice. The pale pink color set off her golden skin and dark brown hair. She slipped into the suit, pulled on a cute cover-up and found her favorite white flip flops with pink flowers, that just so happened to match her suit and cover-up perfectly. What luck.

Don arrived minutes later. Lily had quickly french braided her hair halfway down and then pulled the ends into a sexy, messy bun, and the look on Don's face clearly stated that she had made a good choice. "Come on," he urged, grabbing her hand and pulling her out the door.

"What kind of pool are we going to anyway?" Lily asked as they sat in the cab.

"The police gym has a lap pool in the back. It's closed today though, so it'll be just us."

"And how'd you manage that?"

"I've got connections!" he insisted.

Once at the pool Don shed his shirt and sandals and waited for Lily to do the same. Instead she just stood there. "Com on, Lil! If you don't take off that dress thingy right now, I'm gonna throw you into the water."

"Alright, alright." she self consciously pulled the cover-up over her head and slipped out of her flip flops. "Cannon ball!" Don yelled, lifting her into his arms easily and jumping in.

"Honestly, Don, you're such a kid." Lily said when she surfaced, remarkably still in Don's arms.

"Jeez, Lil, could you be any more bony?" he asked as her hip bones jutted into his side. He gently put her down "Your spine is sticking out and your hip bones hurt like crazy." he paused,and uncomfortable expression on his face. "Lily, are you eating right?"

"Of course I am," she said a little too quickly, "Didn't you see me eat last time we went out?"

"Lily, you picked at a salad and ate like two bites of chicken."

Lily looked away uncomfortably, "I'm OK, Don. I just have to manage my weight if I want to keep modeling. And face it, it's all I'm good for. I have no college diploma or anything."

"Managing your weight? Is that what you call it? Are you anorexic, Lily?"

"No!" she insisted, and it was true. She ate, not much, but she did. She just threw it back up. "I purge every now and then," she admitted. But, really, it's no big deal!"

"But it is a big deal, Lily! You could hurt yourself, or even kill yourself!"

"I'm FINE!" she shouted, "Stop butting into my life!"

Don's expression immediately turned hurt, causing Lily to feel very guilty. "I thought that I was a part of your life," he said quietly, climbing out of the pool. "But if this is the way you're gonna be..."

"Don, no! Stop! Please," Don glanced back and saw the tortured expression on her face, and couldn't help but stop. "I know I have a problem." she began, "I've tried getting help but I keep going back to doing this! I want to stop, I really do, but I just can't."

Don pulled her up out of the pool and placed a soft kiss on her lips. "I'm gonna help you get through this, ok baby?"

A tear slipped down Lily's cheek, "Ok."

**A/N Uh oh! Bad Lily! I was going to stop after the babies were born, but this idea popped into my head, so I decided to expand the story. YAY! You can give me lots and lots of reviews for that.**


	17. Chapter 16

"I can't believe I didn't notice anything!" Lindsay mused angrily as she and Danny lay awake in bed that night. "I'm a terrible sister! How could I not notice that she weighs 90 pounds? She's throwing up all her food, for goodness sake!"

"Linds, you've got a lot on your plate right now."

"That doesn't justify me now noticing that my sister is pretty much killing herself."

"This isn't your fault, Linds, you shouldn't take so much blame for it. It was Lily's choice to do this to herself, not yours."

"Oh, so now you're blaming her? It's not her fault, it's the freakin' fashion industry!"

"That's not what I meant and you know it!"

Lindsay looked guilty. "I know," she said, kissing Danny on the lips. "I'm sorry, it's just…I'm so mad!" Don had come to Lindsay and Nancy that afternoon and told them all about Lily's admission. They had immediately called a counselor, and Lily promised that if she didn't stop after seeing the counselor for a month that she'd check herself into a clinic that specializes in helping people with eating disorders.

"I might as well just move here," Lily said. "I mean, with my job I'm constantly flying places so it doesn't really matter where I live. And besides, you're here, and the babies are here."

"And Don's here," Lindsay teased. She didn't care what the reason for Lily staying in New York was, she was just glad that her sister was going to be near by, especially considering her condition, and the fact that her mother was going to be leaving soon.

Nancy wanted to extend her visit, claiming that she needed to be here for her daughter, but Lily insisted that she go when she was scheduled to. "I'm gonna be fine, Mama," she said. "Lindsay will watch out for me, and so will Don."

Nancy agreed reluctantly, but insisted that Lily had to find an apartment before she left.

Lily found an apartment in a remarkably short amount of time. Its location seemed perfect to her, because it smack dab in-between Lindsay's apartment and Don's. She arranged for a moving service to pack up all her belongings and in no time, she was moving in to her new apartment.

Nancy left New York, making Lindsay promise to let her come visit soon, and send her lots of pictures of her grandchildren.

"It's so quiet." Lindsay said, as she and Danny entered their apartment after returning from the airport. She had gotten used to having her mom and Lily around the house for the last month, so it seemed remarkably empty. The twins were falling asleep, so their parents carried them to their bedroom and put them down for a nap.

"You know what I'm gonna like about not having your mom and sister here?" Danny asked Lindsay, curling up with her on the couch.

"What," Lindsay smiled.

"That I can do this without having to worry about your mom walking in on us." With that he kissed her, long and deep, taking her breath away as he did so easily. He ran his fingers through her hair. "You're so beautiful," he whispered, trailing kisses down her neck. Lindsay pulled Danny's head up so that she could kiss him again.

"Nice of you to say so," she murmured in-between kisses.

"It's the truth," he countered.

They were in the middle of a nice make out session that would put many teenage couples to shame when Brooke started crying. Lindsay sighed, "I'd better go get her."

"Let her cry herself to sleep," Danny said, kissing her again.

"Danny…" she trailed off, not being able to think straight when he was torturing her so. "I need to go see if she's ok."

"No you don't. She stopped crying." It was true; the only sound that could be heard in the apartment was the clock ticking on the wall.

"I'm just going to go see if she's ok." Lindsay said, climbing out of Danny's arms and off of the couch.

"Party pooper," Danny whined.

Lindsay padded down the hall and into the babies' room. Sam slept soundly, but something seemed wrong with Brooke. "Danny?" she said, her voice laced with fear, "Danny, come here!" she began to panic. "Danny! I don't think she's breathing!"

Danny rushed to his wife's side. Lindsay held Brooke in her arms. The child didn't stir, and she didn't seem to be breathing. Danny whipped out his cell phone and called 911.

"911, what is your emergency?" the calm voice said on the other end of the phone.

"My baby – she's not breathing!" Danny stammered. "She was just crying a moment ago and now she's not breathing!"

The operator told them to wait, that an ambulance would be there shortly. Lindsay stood there with her daughter in her arms, sobbing hysterically. "Brooke!" she wailed, "You've gotta wake up! You've gotta wake up for mommy!"

Before they knew it, they were at the hospital and Brooke was taken away from them. While waiting for the paramedics Danny had gone next door, and asked May to watch Sam while they took Brooke to the hospital.

The couple sat in the waiting room, tense with fear. Lindsay was still crying and Danny was doing his best to console her. Finally after what seemed like hours a nurse came out into the room. "Mr. And Mrs. Messer?" she asked. Lindsay and Danny came forward at once. "Your daughter is fine," she assured them. "Come with me and you can see her."

The doctor that had revived Brooke was Dr. Montgomery. "We don't know exactly what happened to your daughter," he admitted, "It's possible that she was in the early stage of SIDS. Luckily you caught it in time. We're going to have to keep her overnight for observation."

Lindsay nodded mutely. Danny called May and asked if she could watch Sam overnight, which she had graciously agreed to do. He then called Mac and told him what was going on. Mac had told him not to worry about coming in to work the next day.

Lindsay and Danny sat by their daughter all night long, never sleeping a wink. "I was so afraid of losing her," Lindsay whispered laying her head down on Danny's shoulder.

"I know, baby, me too."

**A/N Just had to throw that in there. This chapter was very fast paced, so I'm sorry. Also, I know nothing about SIDS; I kinda just made that up. So, sorry if it isn't accurate or something. **


	18. Chapter 17

Danny woke up at one o'clock in the morning and discovered that Lindsay wasn't in the bed next to him. The babies didn't need to be fed for another hour or so, but he decided to check their room anyway. Sure enough, Lindsay stood next to Brooke's bed.

She turned around when she heard him enter the room, and he could see that she was crying. She wiped away her tears and turned back to look at her baby. Danny wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and pulled her back so that she was leaning on his chest. "I had to make sure she was breathing," Lindsay said, her voice thick with tears. "I had to make she was ok."

"Linds, she's fine. You know that. The doctors said it was a one time thing, and that it'd probably never happen again."

"I know," she said, "but I just had to make sure."

Danny kissed the top of Lindsay's head. "It's ok, baby, you need to get some sleep."

Lindsay turned around, still in Danny's arms, wrapped her arms around his neck and lay her head down on his shoulder. The two stood there for a long time, arms around each other, neither saying a word. Lindsay yawned. "Come on, Linds, time for bed."

"No," Lindsay said stubbornly, "I want to stay with my babies."

"You need sleep."

"My children need me," she said, obviously not going to change her mind.

Danny sighed. "I didn't want to have to do this, but…" he picked her up with ease and began to carry her out of the room.

"No! Danny," she whisper yelled, "No! I want to stay here!" She couldn't speak any longer though, as her words had turned into tears. Danny laid her gently on the bed, and crawled in next to her. She buried her face in his chest and continued sobbing. "I'm no good at this," she said finally, "I'm not cut out to be a mother. I'm not good enough for them."

"No, Lindsay! You know that's not true. It wasn't your fault you know that. There wasn't anything that either of us could've done."

"I'm her mother!" Lindsay wailed. "I'm supposed to protect her!"

"You did the best you could, Linds."

Eventually, Lindsay cried herself to sleep, safe in the confines of Danny's arms

* * *

There was a knock on the door the next afternoon. Opening it, Lindsay saw her sister standing in the doorway. "Lil!" she squealed, "It's so good to see you!"

Lily looked at her strangely, "I just saw you 3 days ago, Linds, and you act like it was 3 years!"

"Sorry," Lindsay apologized. "I hate Monday's"

"Why?" Lily asked, "It's not like you have to go back to work on Monday like most people do."

"Danny does."

"Oh."

"I get really lonely, sometimes. I got so used to having you and Danny and Mom here all the time that it seems too quiet when it's just me and the babies."

"Well, lucky for you, I'm here today! Why don't we take the babies for a walk? It's a gorgeous day."

"Sounds good," Lindsay was dying to get out of the house. Brooke and Sam had both been fussy all morning, and she suspected they needed some fresh air. She would've taken them out herself, but was too afraid to.

The sisters got the babies dressed, and loaded a diaper bag with diapers and bottles and wipes. Finally they were ready to go. Lindsay strapped them into their stroller and they set off.

They decided to take them to Central Park. The babies had never been there, and although they obviously didn't know that, Lindsay thought it would be a good experience. They were native New Yorkers, after all. It was a gorgeous day, and Lindsay was glad that Lily had the foresight to bring a blanket. They found a spot in the shade, unfolded the blanket, and laid the babies down on it, the sisters sitting on either side of the small children.

"How are you, Lil?" Lindsay asked. This was a question neither of them particularly liked, but they both knew that it needed to be asked.

"I'm fine," Lily said, "I've gained almost 10 pounds."

"That's great!" Lindsay said.

"It's hard. My body says that it's a good thing, but my brain tells me that it's bad. I feel so fat and ugly."

"Lily, we both know that's not true!" Lindsay insisted, "You're beautiful! How else could you have gotten to be a model?"

Lily shrugged, "It's for the best, I suppose. The doctors told me that if I keep this up, it'll kill me," a tear slipped out of her eye, "I don't want to die, Lindsay!"

"You're not going to die, Lily," Lindsay assured her. "We all care about you, me and Mom and Danny and Flack. We're here for you; you know that! Nothing is going to happen to you!"

"Ok," Lily sniffed, "Ok."

**A/N A short one, I know, but I have a good chapter coming up next! Review!**


	19. Chapter 18

"Lindsay?" Danny stopped in his tracks, thinking he was hallucinating, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to talk to Mac." Lindsay explained, as though this was very obvious.

"Where are Brooke and Sammy?"

"I left them all alone," Lindsay said sarcastically. She rolled her eyes. "May volunteered to watch them."

"Oh. Why do you need to talk to Mac?"

"I want to talk about coming back to work."

"This soon?"

"Danny, the kids are nearly 9 months old. I just want to try coming back, and if I don't want to, I'll go back home and stay with the kids."

"Well, who will watch them?" Danny asked, slightly impatient.

"May."

"Doesn't she have to work?"

"She actually just got laid off. It's perfect timing. Not that I'm happy that she lost her job or anything, but…"

"So you're really ready to just leave our babies home all day long with some stranger?" Danny was getting annoyed, and slightly angry.

So was Lindsay. "She's not a stranger, Danny, she's our neighbor! She's my friend! She's the one that's been keeping me going since you had to come back to work and leave me all alone!" With that she turned on her heel and headed towards Mac's office.

Danny was waiting outside Mac's office when Lindsay came out. He grabbed her arm. "Come on," he said, pulling her in the other direction.

"Danny," she hissed, "what are you doing?"

"We need to talk," he said, pulling her into a storage closet.

"What?" she demanded, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?" Lindsay asked, honestly not knowing what he was talking about.

"About the way you were feeling."

"Feeling about what?"

"About being so lonely while I'm gone."

She bit her lip and turned away when she realized what he was talking about. "I didn't want to make you feel guilty," she said quietly.

"Well that didn't work very well did it?" Danny couldn't help by shouting. He wasn't angry with her, necessarily; he just wished that she had been more open with her.

Tears welled in her eyes. Danny had never ever yelled at her before and it made her feel like a failure and a terrible person.

When he saw the tears, Danny also felt like a terrible person. It hurt him to see her cry, but when he was the reason for her tears, well, you might as well just shoot him. He reached out to hug her, but she pulled away, making him feel any worse.

"I'm sorry," she sniffed, "I just miss you so much! When we were both working, we were together almost all the time. And then the babies came, and you took a lot of time off of work to be with us, and now you came back but I didn't."

"Lindsay, I'm the one who should be sorry. I should have realized how you were feeling."

"No, you shouldn't have, because the way I've been feeling is stupid. I shouldn't feel this was, I'm just being selfish."

"No you're not. Because if you were being selfish, I would be being selfish too."

Lindsay sniffed again. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, I miss you like crazy. Thinking about getting home to you is the only thing that gets me through the day."

"But I thought you love your job."

"I do," Danny said truthfully, "But I love you even more."

"Oh, Danny!" Sobbing, she threw herself into Danny's arms. He held her as close as was humanly possible and peppered the top of her head with kisses. She began to yearn for his lips to be on her own lips, instead of her hair, so she raised her head up and kissed him hungrily. He responded eagerly, lifting her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist and backing her up so that she was up against a wall. His tongue begged for entrance to her mouth, which she immediately granted. Lindsay had relieved him of his shirt and was running her hands along his biceps when Danny's phone rang.

He groaned and reluctantly tore his lips away to check his phone. It was Mac. "You've gotta be kidding me!" He turned his back to Lindsay to take the call, afraid that if he were looking at her he'd lose all self-control. "Messer," he answered as a pair of hot lips attached themselves to the back of his neck, biting and sucking. He tensed up and shivered at the feeling. "Yeah, ok, Mac. I'll be right there." He said with difficulty, much to the satisfaction of Lindsay who was trailing kisses all over the back of his neck and shoulders. He snapped his phone shut and whirled around, planting a very hard kiss on Lindsay's lips. "You don't know what you do to me, do you Montana?" he asked, his voice husky.

"Probably about the same thing you do to me," she managed to say, before kissing him again.

"I have -" Kiss. "to-" Kiss. "go." A long kiss followed.

"No," Lindsay murmured against his lips.

"Yes." He said

"No," Lindsay insisted.

"Yes." It killed him to do it, but he pulled away from his wife and slipped his shirt back over his wife beater.

She sighed dramatically. "Ok. Fine. Go save the world."

"I will," he teased, risking one more soft kiss before leaving the storage closet.

Sighing, Lindsay sank to the ground, alone once again.

A/N K, it's short I know. This was supposed to be part of another chapter, but I decided to make it a chapter of its own. Reviews!

**Xoxo**

**Lia**


	20. Chapter 19

Lindsay returned to work the next week. As soon as she did, everybody seemed happier. The whole team was grateful for more man (or woman) power, Stella was ecstatic to have more female presence, Danny and Lindsay both enjoyed the extended amounts of time they had together, and May was beside herself with joy, as she got to watch Brooke and Sam nearly every day. Lindsay felt slightly guilty sometimes for being away from her babies so much, but she felt that she made it up to them after work and on the weekends.

Months went by and the twin's first birthday was quickly approaching. Danny and Lindsay, along with the help of Lily and Flack, spent every free moment they had – when they weren't working or tending to the babies, that is – planning Brooke and Sam's first birthday party. Everything seemed to be perfect. Lindsay was seriously convinced that she had the best life that she could have. It was as though everything with Mark, and Brooke's SIDS scare and Lily's battle with bulimia had never even happened. Unfortunately for her, Lindsay had also forgotten that good things don't always last.

Lindsay, Danny and Mac were out in the field, looking for a prime suspect in the murder of the leader of a prominent gang. They came across his apartment building – a dirty, grimy disgusting place that made it hard to believe that people actually inhabited the apartments. They knocked on his door, but nobody answered. They heard some shuffling inside the apartment, so they knew that somebody was in there. "Raphael Perez!" Mac shouted through the door, "NYPD! Open up!" Mac waited a few seconds, but soon grew impatient and, with the help of Danny, knocked the door open.

They entered the apartment – which was just as gross and disgusting as the hallways – to see Raphael standing in the middle of the room, a smirk on his face and a gun in his hands. He didn't even flinch when he saw that it was 3 against 1, and that all of the police officers had guns as well, he just stood there, a cocky grin on his face.

"You don't want to do this, Raphael," Mac told him.

"No, I'm sure that I really do." Raphael insisted, still grinning. "I mean, what do I got ta lose? I'm already goin' to jail."

"Killing a cop is a lot more serious than killing a gang banger," Lindsay told him.

"Keep your mouth shut!" Raphael began to lose his temper.

"I think it's you that needs to keep your mouth shut," Danny countered.

"Shut up!" Raphael obviously had a very short temper. The veins in his head began to bulge out, and his hands began to shake. He struggled to keep his gun level.

"Raphael," Mac said softly, inching forward. "Raphael, put the gun down."

"No," the cocky grin had disappeared from Raphael's face, but he was still determined not to let the cops get his gun. He wasn't as confident as he had been moments ago, but he was still stubborn, and it was quite obvious that that wasn't going to change anytime soon.

Finally Raphael couldn't take it any longer. He fired the gun at Lindsay, seemingly because she was the easiest target – Mac was partially behind a wall and Danny was slightly behind Lindsay. With amazing speed, Danny jumped in front of Lindsay, and the bullet embedded itself in his shoulder. Crying out in pain, he fell to the floor. Not even a second after Raphael had fired, Mac had too. He shot the gang member in the leg, so that he too fell to the floor, writhing in pain.

"Danny!" Lindsay shrieked, crouching down beside him. She put pressure on the wound, trying desperately to stop the blood, as tears flowed down her cheeks. "Danny, are you ok?"

"I'm fine, Montana," he said to calm her, even though he was in a pretty great amount of pain. "Shh…Linds, it's ok. Don't cry, that makes it hurt worse."

Lindsay almost immediately stopped crying. "It hurts?" she asked, a near tortured expression on her face.

"Just a little bit." Danny said, which was an understatement. "But looking at you makes it better, so just stay right where you are."

Lindsay nodded, trying really hard to keep the tears back.

Within minutes, the paramedics arrived. The whisked Danny away to the hospital, and once again, Lindsay was left in the waiting room, except this time, she was completely alone. Luckily, Stella arrived a few minutes later. Lindsay burst into tears the moment she saw her friend, and the older woman took her into her arms. "Why do so many bad things happen to me?" she wailed. "Is God punishing me for something? What did I do wrong?"

Stella managed to calm Lindsay down, and the two sat down in the hard waiting room chairs. "You didn't do anything wrong, Lindsay. None of this is your fault!"

"Ever since my dad died nothing has gone right!"

"That's not true. You made up with Lily, and you had your babies. Those are good things." Stella said, in what she hoped was a soothing tone.

"Yeah, and then Lily goes bulimic and Brooke nearly dies."

"But Lily's gaining weight, and Brooke is fine now," Stella reasoned.

"I guess." Lindsay sniffed.

"How's Danny?" Stella asked, unsure if this was an ok question.

"The doctor said he's going to be fine," Lindsay brushed away a tear with the back of her hand, "But he lost a lot of blood."

"I'm sure the doctors are going to fix him up. He'll be back to his old self in no time."

"Knowing Danny, you're probably right," Lindsay managed a laugh through her tears.

"Yeah."

A nurse came out, and Lindsay felt a sense of déjà vu, remembering when Brooke was in the hospital. "Is somebody here for Daniel Messer?"

"Go ahead," Stella urged, "I'll come see him in a minute."

"Ok, thanks." Lindsay got up and followed the nurse back to Danny's room. "Is he ok?" Lindsay asked timidly.

"He's fine." The nurse assured her. "He was cracking jokes the whole time we were working on him."

"That sounds like Danny," Lindsay smiled.

"Well, here we are. You can go on in," the pretty blonde nurse smiled at Lindsay.

"Thanks." She hesitantly pushed open the door and saw Danny sitting up in a hospital bed in the far corner of the room. Determined not to cry, she went and sat on the edge of the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Better now that you're here," he said, that cocky grin of his lighting up his features.

Lindsay sniffed, and managed a smile. "Really, Danny, how do you feel?"

"You know, no pain, no gain. It's just a battle wound," he joked, "It'll be a good story to tell the kids, though."

Lindsay couldn't take it any longer, "It's not funny!" she cried. "You could have died! Do you really think that I can live without you? Because if you do, you're wrong!" Tears spilled out of her eyes and rolled down her face.

"Linds," Danny said, taking her into is arms, "Really, I'm fine! I'm going to be ok!"

"I hate this job!" she exclaimed, "You may be ok this time, but next time you might die! Next time there might not be a next time! Don't you get it, Danny?"

Danny let her cry for a moment before saying anything. "I think you might me right, Linds."

"Of course I'm right," she said, causing him to chuckle.

"This is a dangerous job, I know that. I think that you should stop working."

"Why?"

"You got me to thinking. I need to protect you and the babies. It'll be a lot easier for me to do that if you're not intentionally putting yourself in harms way all the time."

"You think that I can't protect myself?" Lindsay asked, slightly annoyed.

"No, but I just think that the kids should grow up having a mother. You're right, I could die doing this job, and if I ever were to die, I wouldn't want you to die right there along side me. Do you get what I'm saying?" he asked gently.

"I think so." Lindsay sniffled.

"Ok," he said, leaning back and taking her with him so that she was lying on his chest. He scooted over on the bed to give her more room. "Ok…"

The two of them lay quietly in each other's arms until they eventually fell asleep.

**A/N Skylar87, you totally called it! I just had to give you credit for having amazing foreshadowing detecting skills! Lol…so, unfortunately, I'm almost done. One more chapter and then it's over. So review your little heart out, since there's only one more chapter to review after this one. **


	21. Chapter 20

It was literally the perfect day for an outdoor birthday party. This was a good thing, seeing as Lindsay and Danny were throwing one for Brooke and Sam's first birthday. They had decided on having it at Central Park and they went all out. They had pony rides, and clowns and everything else you could think of for a kids' birthday party. The unfortunate part was that they wouldn't even remember it. Danny and Lindsay didn't care though, as the rest of the kids seemed to be having a blast. Only being 1, Brooke and Sam didn't really have many friends, but their parents invited some of the kids in the apartment building – including some of the other kids May watched, Sheila's niece and nephew, the 5 kids that lived on the other side of them (yes, 5 in one apartment) and Sid the doorman's 3 grandchildren. Also in attendance was Hawke's niece and Flack's twin nephews. The entire team was at the part as well, although not all at the same time. Mac and Peyton dropped by briefly, but had other plans so they had to leave after about an hour. Flack and Stella were the only ones that were able to stay for the whole time, but Lindsay and Danny didn't have a problem with that. They were just happy that the kids were having such a good time.

Danny laughed as his wife accompanied each of their children on a pony ride. Obviously, being so young, they couldn't quite ride a horse without assistance, but their mother was perfectly happy to help. Growing up on a ranch, she was very at home on top of a horse. "Come on, Danny!" she begged, "Come take a ride with Sammy!"

"Uh, I don't think so, Linds. I think I'm gonna stay right here." He replied nervously.

"Chicken," she teased.

"It looks like Brooke and Sam are taking after you," Stella told Lindsay after they were done with the ponies. "They both seemed to have a great time."

"Yeah, they're not gonna turn out to be chickens like their daddy." Lindsay smirked and poked Danny in the side.

"Chicken? Me?" Danny said. "I'm the one who took a bullet for you."

The smile disappeared off of Lindsay's face. It had been nearly a month since the accident, but she wasn't quite ready to joke about it yet.

Stella, seeing the look on her face, immediately piped up. "Let me take Brooke, Linds. I'll take her over there, with Sam and May." Lindsay gave her friend a grateful smile and handed the baby off to her.

Danny took Lindsay by the hand and led her away from everybody else. "I'm sorry," he said quietly.

"I know you are," Lindsay replied, "It's just…I just want to forget all about it. I mean, I had forgotten all about Mark and Lily's bulimia and SIDS and all of that and then you go and get yourself shot!" Tears glimmered in Lindsay's eyes, but she held them back, sick of crying so much all the time. "What I said in the hospital, about not being able to live without you, it's true, Danny. If you were gone I seriously don't think that I could make it on my own."

Danny took his wife into his arms. "I know, baby. I can't live without you either, Linds. That's why I asked you to stop working. If anything were to ever happen to you, I'd feel like I failed you, like I should have protected you."

"I love you, Danny," she murmured into his chest.

"I love you too, babe." He squeezed her a little tighter, before pulling back so that he could kiss her. She allowed him to do so for a while, but soon pulled back as well.

"We should get back to the party." She said breathlessly.

He kissed her once more. "Ok." He gave her several quick kisses on the lips before slinging an arm around her shoulder and walking back to the party with her.

The rest of the party went very smoothly - not counting, of course, the fact that Brooke started screaming and buried her head in her mothers shoulder when the clown tried to make her a balloon wiener dog, which obviously caused a whole lot of laughter from the adults. Sam found wrapping paper very amusing, and completely ignored all of his presents so that he could play with all the bows and ribbons and paper.

Lindsay leaned up against Danny's chest, and he wrapped his arms around her. They laughed as they watched Flack playing with the kids. He obviously had very little experience with children. Lily was trying so very hard to not laugh at him as he held a very squirmy Sam in his arms. Danny kissed the sensitive spot behind Lindsay's ear. "I'm glad we decided to have kids."

"Me too," Lindsay giggled.

"What would you say to having a couple more?"

"Maybe in a couple of years. I don't think we can handle any more at this point."

"Yeah. Maybe next year."

"Maybe next year."

Finis 

**A/N All done. I'm sorry, but I knew that if I didn't end it now, I never would. **


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